Double Edged
by OftenWrongSoong
Summary: Having emotions doesn't always work in your favor. Being able to be happy means that you are able to be sad. And being able to love... means that you are able to be hurt. Explicit descriptions of adult situations, including sexual violence.
1. Chapter 1

Skofnung; The Blade from the Tomb

Chapter One; Vital

_Vital. Noun. 1. Burial clothes. 2. Essential body parts.3. Bier._

* * *

When he came to, it was to total darkness. This was somewhat unexpected, as his most recent memory log showed a view of a large well lit control room full of blinking lights, monitor screens and humming machinery, and the other members of the away team fanning out in their search pattern. He remembered that they had shuttled down to the planet's surface, unable to beam through the turbulent atmosphere.

He consulted his internal chronometer and discovered a lapse of memory lasting eight minutes, forty one point three five seconds.

Curious, he ran a quick level one diagnostic. _Visual sensors offline. Auditory sensors offline. Tactile sensors offline._

Oh dear. That explained a lot. What a strange experience. He supposed this is what sensory deprivation was like. He almost felt as if he were floating through space.

He gave himself a mental shake and set about attempting to resolve the issue. He rebooted his auditory system, and slowly became aware of a voice.

"... in. Repeat, Commander Data, can you hear me?"

"Yes, Captain, I can hear you." Data replied. Picard's voice was distorted and slightly muffled, thrumming through the combadge on his chest. He heard the captain sigh.

"Thank God. Data, what happened? Are you alright?"

"I am unsure Captain, on both points. I appear to have been offline for a short while, and my systems are still rebooting. As I am unable to provide any further information, I must ask you to be quiet for a moment as I assess the situation as best I can."

Data pondered his predicament as his tactile sensors reactivated. He was lying on his back on a hard surface, concrete to judge by the texture. There was very little air movement, so the space must be small and enclosed. He raised his arms, and almost immediately encountered resistance. Running his hands over the obstruction, he determined that it was a steel beam, topped with more concrete slabs, riven with cracks and dents. He registered the patter of fragments as the material above him flaked onto his face.

"Sir? I appear to be buried under debris. I can conclude therefore that there has been some sort of collapse, possibly due to an earthquake or similar, or an explosive of some kind."

"Our sensors picked up what appeared to be an explosion, and a burst of electro-magnetic energy." That was Geordi. He must be on the bridge, monitoring at a science station.

"That would explain my temporary deactivation. It would seem that the control room was rigged with some sort of booby-trap, perhaps in order to..."

"Data." Picard cut him off. "What about the rest of the away team?"

"Visual sensors are still offline, tactile sensors are partial. If you will maintain silence again temporarily I will attempt to locate the others. Stand by."

In the darkness, with his hands pressed to the cold metal above him, he turned up the gain on his auditory sensors and stilled his internal systems in order to focus his hearing outside of his confinement.

"I can hear four heartbeats. Two are erratic. I can also detect breathing from four distinct sources. It would seem that all members of the away team are alive, but I am unable to hear any voices or movement. I am forced to assume that their situations are similar to my own."

"Data, you are the only one we've been able to establish contact with. Is there any way that you can get out and find the others? We have shuttles en route, but they won't be with you for another..." There was a pause as the captain consulted, "... twenty minutes or so."

"Understood, Captain. I am still rebooting, but as soon as all of my systems are functioning again, I..."

_Fear. _

"... Ah." His emotion chip had come back online. How inconvenient. He felt cold dread slither down his spine, the sensation almost physical. As his tactile sensors became fully active, he became aware of something else.

He was pinned. And it hurt.

"... Oh. Oh dear." This was particularly poor timing. Under better circumstances the sensation would be fascinating, but right now, it was something he could have done without.

"Data? What's wrong?" Picard sounded anxious, as well he might. Well, so was he.

"I... my emotion chip has activated. Please... stand by." He was aware now of the second beam, this one lying across his shins. Or, more accurately, through. He twisted as far as he could, and his questing fingertips measured the gap between the beam and the floor to be six point three two centimetres. He winced reflexively as his fingers encountered the splinters of titanium protruding from his uniform. His sensors were registering the damage, and his emotion chip was translating that to physical sensation, and subsequent emotional response. It wasn't pain as humans felt it, of that he was sure, but the symptoms were the same. His hand trembled as he straightened and he took a deep breath, as if the act of inhaling could somehow calm him. Merely a reflex, a pre-programmed response, an imitation of humanity. The pain was not real, he had no adrenal response, he would have to rationalise this out.

But it hurt. For the first time, real pain was shooting up his legs. He felt dizzied by the sensations.

"Data? Are you still there?" The captain's voice dragged him back to reality. He blinked and realized that there were tears on his cheeks. He breathed deeply again.

"Yes... Yes, I am 'still here'. I... my legs..." Why was he suddenly unable to articulate his thoughts? A strange response. He would have to analyse this further, at a more appropriate moment. "There is a steel beam across my lower legs. My shins are almost totally crushed." Better. Push down the panic, that rising hysteria that made him want to wail and beat his fists against the concrete encasing him. Focus, and remember your training. Think logically. There are others in more pressing need of help.

"Sir, I believe there is clear air coming in from behind me, I can feel it moving my hair. I think I may be able to pull myself out, but it may be... unpleasant. I would advise that we break communications while I make the attempt."

"Absolutely not." The captain's voice was firm. "If we are unable to establish a com link again, we'll have no way to accurately locate you when the shuttles arrive on the surface. Do what you can to get free and get to the others."

"Acknowledged."

* * *

The bridge of the _Enterprise_ NC1701-E was tense, all ears on the com link with the distant surface. The viewscreen showed the roiling atmosphere of the planet below, and looking out, Captain Picard was all too aware of the people, his people, trapped somewhere below those turgid and turbulent butt layers. His jaw clenched as he strained his ears, and he heard the faint hiss as, far away and alone, his second officer sucked a breath between his teeth.

There was a screech, the sound of metal scraping on metal. Picard shuddered, his teeth set on edge. It was the audio equivalent of chewing on foil, the sound of the taste of blood. Behind him Deanna Troi winced, and Geordi's fingernails scraped across the surface of the screen he was stationed at.

There was another screech, and a gasp. The disembodied sounds were horrible, like hearing an assault through the wall and being powerless to help. The captain's jaw worked rhythmically, the muscles in his cheeks tensing as he stared down at the planet, as if his fierce gaze could burn away the atmospheric disturbance preventing him from rescuing his crew.

The bridge was bright and airy, the thrum and hum of the mighty ship surrounding them like a comforting blanket of white noise, but the sounds filtering up to them through the com made all of them think of the plight of those trapped on the surface. The androids breaths were louder now; obviously the space he was pulling himself through had narrowed. Geordi knew all too well what it was to be alone and without sight in a potentially hostile environment, and his heart ached for his friend. Deanna could hear the strain in Data's voice as the disturbing scraping sounds halted.

"I am almost free of the collapsed section of ceiling, I think I can..." There was a sharp crack, and another screech howled across the ether, but this time it was recognisably a voice. Not quite human in extremis, Data's vocal synthesiser was struggling to make sense of the input, and what came through was a scream behind a distorted wail of static.

"Data!" Picard barked. His fists were clenched, and he was aware of a fine sheen of sweat on his forehead. "Report!"

"Huh... uh..." The vocal synthesiser stuttered and shrilled for a moment. "I... I am free of the debris. Please... stand by."

* * *

Data rested for a moment, his head slightly elevated on the slab he had pulled himself onto. He was face up, there was clear air around him, and his tactile sensors were going haywire. He thought for a moment about trying to disable them, but realised that without them he would have very little information to go on.

"Sir, I must request that you maintain com silence as I commence my search for the rest of the team. I will keep the link active as requested, but the only way I have of locating the others is by sound. I think the electro-magnetic pulse must have damaged part of my neural net, I am unable to bring visual sensors online."

"Very well, do what you can. The shuttles will be with you soon."

"Thank you Captain, that is good to know."

Data slowed his intake of air, and once again listened. Out of the confines of the wreckage of the control room, it was much easier to hear the subtle sounds of his crewmates. He rolled onto his stomach and dragged himself to the closest heart beat, his nimble fingers assessing the stability of the detritus. He dragged the rubble clear and ran his hands over the body he had uncovered.

"I have found Commander Riker. His left shoulder is dislocated, there is a contusion on his left temple, and... I believe his right tibia is broken. However, his breathing and heartbeat are steady and regular. He is in no immediate danger, but remains unconscious."

"Good work, Data." Data could almost hear the captain's smile, and he smiled himself at the thought as he clawed his way to the next casualty.

* * *

"Sir? Request to take an additional shuttle to the surface." Geordi had turned away from the science station to look across the bridge at his captain. Picard cocked an eyebrow at him.

"There are two shuttles on their way to them now, La Forge. There should be more than enough space for all the casualties."

"With respect, sir..." Geordi's brow furrowed over his visor. "That's two shuttles with medical personnel, but Data's in a bad way by the sounds of things. He needs an engineer, not a doctor. They won't know how to help him."

"Do you believe he may suffer from not receiving immediate care? Surely you could work on him when they get him back with the others?" Picard looked thoughtful, considering all angles. Geordi shook his head.

"Honestly sir, it depends how badly he's damaged. If there's something really wrong, and they don't know how to fix it in time..." Geordi's throat closed as despair swamped him. The thought of gentle, brave Data dying for lack of a technician overwhelmed him momentarily. Picard eyed him for a moment, and then jerked his head towards the turbolift.

"Go."

* * *

"Lieutenant Daniels. Several broken ribs, breathing laboured, heartbeat erratic. I would surmise that he has internal injuries, possibly a punctured lung. Suggest he is made a priority case for the incoming medical team."

"Acknowledged. Geordi's on his way in another shuttle, with equipment and an engineering team. How are you holding up?"

"I..." Data pondered for a moment. Would telling the captain of his pain be of any practical use? There wasn't much Picard could do, and it would only worry him. "I am functioning adequately under the circumstances. My sensors are damaged, and I am having difficulty assessing the extent of my own injuries."

"As soon as you've found the other casualties I want a report on your own condition. The more information I can pass on to Geordi, the better prepared he'll be."

"I understand." The rubble shifted under him and he slid down a slight depression, almost on top of the next heartbeat. His dexterous hands made light work of the concrete and rebar.

"Ensign T'mir. Heartbeat and breathing regular. Broken... Contusion... Stable. No immediate..."

"Data? You're breaking up. Get that com link stable!" Picard barked at someone on the bridge. Data didn't recognise the voice that replied, although he knew that he should. He knew everyone on that ship... "The link is strong sir, I don't know what's causing the..." It was the young man, wasn't it, the one with the red hair? Data shook his head and interrupted.

"Sir? It was me, sir. I... ppear to b..." Data gritted his teeth. "The... seem to have a prob... faculties. Will attempt... rectify."

He ran another diagnostic in hopes of solving this serious error as he made his way to the last heartbeat, or at least, where the heartbeat had been.

The diagnostic had thrown up some interesting errors, not least of which was a lesion between two segments of his positronic net. He rerouted some neural pathways to circumvent the damaged areas, and suddenly his visual feed came back online. He blinked, astonished for a moment. Then his eyes focused on the begrimed face of the young women lying before him. He could see immediately why he could no longer hear her heartbeat, but he still felt for her pulse. His hand came away coated with her blood.

"Sir, I have visual. I have found Ensign Singh. She... She is gone, sir. I am sorry, I got to her as quickly as I could."

"It's alright Data, you've done extraordinarily well under the circumstances."

Data looked at the woman's face, so close to his own in his prone position. Just a girl, really. She must have been so pleased to be assigned to the _Enterprise_ at such a tender age. He had seen death before, but it never got any easier. The emotion chip shook him and wrung him as he closed her eyes over the film of dust on the dulled corneas.

"The first shuttles will be there soon, and Geordi's right behind them. Can you give me a report on your condition?" The captain's voice once again recalled him to himself, and he looked away from the body and pushed himself to a sitting position.

The flood of horror that coursed through him as he looked down at himself was sudden and debilitating. He had never seen himself damaged with the emotion chip activated, and the sense of... _wrongness_... was overwhelming.

He had been forced to drag his mangled legs out from under the beam, and the titanium and duranium had shattered, twisted and splintered. Long wires and clusters of sensors trailed from the rents in his uniform, shredded from his crawling search for his team. His mouth gaped as he followed his path with his eyes, clearly marked with a trail of shimmering yellow where his ruptured hydraulics had spewed and leaked a track like some enormous snail.

"Bad..." He managed to croak. He closed his eyes and lay back down.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter Two; Extraho

_Extraho. Verb. 1. Drag out. 2. Prolong. 3. Remove. ._

* * *

"In here! Look, there's Commander Riker!"

"Find Daniels, he's our priority case." That sounded like the medical team. Data found it hard to care. They weren't here for him. He indulged in a moment of bitterness before being bought back to the moment at hand by a sharp jolt of sensory data which he interpreted again as pain. He reacted in a particularly human way to the stimulus with a flinch and a gasp as his eyes shot open.

"Oh good lord, Commander! I'm so sorry, I didn't see... there're wires everywhere, I must've stepped on..."

"That... That is quite alright." It wasn't really, he felt like shouting at the young woman for being so careless, but under the circumstances he 'bit his tongue', as Geordi might say. He wondered how long it might be until his engineer friend arrived.

"He's on his way sir, not ten minutes behind us." Her voice was slightly further away, obviously moving towards the other casualties. Data was not aware that he had spoken aloud, and that disturbed him. Obviously something was very wrong, he felt limp and underpowered, and now it seemed that his cognition was suffering also. Possibly it was just the lingering after effects of the EMP, or perhaps it was an overload caused by these new sensations, and the feelings they created in him.

The voices had all but gone now, fading away down the corridor as the medical personnel whisked the casualties away to the waiting shuttles. Data sighed and turned his head to regard the body he was sharing the ruins with.

A slab of concrete had fallen across Ensign Singh's lower body, her stomach and pelvis totally crushed by the massive section of ceiling. Obviously the medics had been unable to move the slab, and were unwilling to waste time trying while the living needed their care. That was only logical.

He watched with detached curiosity as a trickle of his hydraulic fluid ran into the pool of blood seeping out from under Singh's mangled corpse. He had never had much of a chance to talk to her, after the drama of the shake-down cruise of the new ship and subsequent repairs; they had all been so busy. He wondered if the engineering team would have the equipment necessary to extricate her.

He was surprised at the depth of feeling engendered in him at the thought of leaving her here. A burial in space was one thing, but to be abandoned in this place...

He put one hand under the concrete slab, braced his shoulders against the rubble, and pushed.

* * *

"Data! Data!"

"... Geordi?" The voice was stilted and quiet, but Geordi could already see the glowing outline of the android as he scrambled through the wreckage. Was it his imagination, or was that halo of light fainter than usual? He slipped and skidded over the loose material, his boots sliding on the spilt fluid trail leading him to his friend.

Data was flat on his back, his legs below the knees almost completely sheared away, and there was a disturbing slow trickle of fluid running over the rubble strewn floor. The android had one arm straight up in the air, supporting a gargantuan concrete slab.

"Geordi, could you pull Ensign Singh clear, please? I have locked my arm in place, but I am still experiencing a significant power drain."

"Over here, guys!" Geordi shouted back over his shoulder as he grabbed the woman's body under her arms and dragged her away from the piece of ceiling that had killed her. She was very dead, he could tell that much.

"Data? How are..." His sentence was cut off by the percussive thump as Data dropped his arm and the concrete crashed to the floor. "... How are you?"

"Not... not good, I am afraid." Geordi knelt down and ran his tricorder over the android. Data was simply lying there, eyes open to what remained of the upper floors of the building. The other two engineers Geordi had bought with him appeared, with cases of tools and spares.

"This is gonna be crude, but we need a quick patch job, no time to make it pretty. We've got to seal off the leaks before we move him. Jensen, can you get a steel plate and some epoxy on there?"

"Yes sir."

"You get going on that, Fisk you support. I'm gonna update them on our situation." Geordi stood and left his engineers working on the stricken android in order to move into the corridor. He tapped his combadge.

"La Forge to Enterprise."

"Picard here. How is he?"

Geordi sighed. "It's bad sir, real bad. He's lost a lot of his hydraulic fluid. That might not sound like a big deal, but the micro-hydraulics provide movement for every part of his systems. If it gets too low, he won't be able to get air into his cooling unit, every moving part will seize, and then it's just a matter of time 'till he overheats to a critical point. We're patching him up as best we can to stop any further fluid loss but, to be quite frank, if he were human, he'd be bleeding to death."

There was a moment of silence as the captain digested this information.

"I have every faith in you and your team, Geordi. Do what you can there, and then get back as quickly as you can."

"Aye, sir. La Forge out." Geordi tapped his combadge again to sever the connection as he walked back out onto the surface to the waiting shuttle, and activated the anti-grav sled.

The twelve minutes and eighteen point seven three seconds between the medical teams leaving and Geordi's arrival had given Data some time to analyse his recent experiences. He had to admit to himself that, while new sensations and emotions were fascinating, there were some that he would really rather do without. Having the chip fused to his neural net was something of a mixed blessing.

He had managed to put the pain to the back of his mind somewhat in order to analyse his situation with more clarity, but the work now being carried out on him was the cause of some discomfort. The sensors had been stripped bare, scraped clean of protective bioplast, and were shrilling their protest into his damage control warning system at every movement the engineers made.

"Ow." He said. The engineer looked up.

"Excuse me, sir?"

"Whatever you just did felt unpleasant. I was articulating my discomfort. Ow."

The two men looked at each other, puzzled.

"Of course, sir. I'm sorry, I'll try and... be more gentle?" The young man was clearly confused, and Data could not fathom why. He had explained things quite clearly, he thought.

"Thank you, that would be very much appreciated."

"Okay, let's load you up!" Geordi reappeared, pushing an anti-grav sled up to let it down next to the android. Geordi grabbed Data under his arms, and the two engineers slid their hands under the trunk of his torso. As they set him down onto the sled, Geordi noticed that the android's face was pinched and drawn, and that he winced as the two other men released their grips. Geordi quirked an eyebrow.

"You okay?" He queried.

Data looked up at his friend. He knew that he could tell Geordi, he would listen and understand. The other two men? Unknown. He was so addled that he couldn't even remember their names. He was their superior officer. Would they think less of him if he admitted weakness? He had often heard people speak of 'manning up' or 'toughing it out', knew that it was expected that he would be able to mask his pain. So, in reply to Geordi's question, Data simply shook his head and looked away.

"Please make sure that Ensign Singh's body is appropriately taken care of." He murmured.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter Three; Adpotus

_Adpotus. Adjective. 1. Drunk, intoxicated._

* * *

The engineering department was a hive of activity. Everyone knew that Lieutenant Commander Data was being bought up from the surface in critical condition, and there was a mad dash for all the necessary parts and equipment to be ready as soon as the shuttle docked. Geordi's instructions had helped, but even he wasn't completely certain of what they would need.

The turbolift doors hummed open and the three engineers emerged, with Data on the anti-grav sled. They swung it into a space between two banks of monitors and set about hooking cables to the android's temple ports, ready to run full diagnostics. The rest of the engineering crew swarmed round, tools and parts at the ready. Geordi looked around the room at his team.

"Okay guys, this is going to be a long day. We have to prioritize the hydraulic systems. Jensen, you've already had a good look at the job, I need you to pinpoint the damage, any leaks or ruptures. V'Las, start replicating and installing additional hydraulic parts as directed by Jensen. Fisk, top up his fluidic system, work with V'Las and Jensen to make sure you're putting it in where it's not gonna come straight back out again. Hesling, I need your expertise getting those sensor clusters sorted out, they're a damn mess and I'm getting some really weird readouts here. Tramin, use the blueprints on file to get on replicating and installing the skeletal structure. Once we've got the hydraulics sorted out, we can start thinking about tendon and muscle clusters. Okay? Get to it."

"Geordi?" Data murmured as the engineers scattered to their relevant tasks, "May I have a word with you in private?"

Geordi looked pointedly at Jensen, bent over the android's legs. The blonde engineer huffed a sigh at being interrupted, but left when Geordi jerked his head impatiently.

"What's up?" He looked down at his friend. Data opened and shut his mouth a couple of times as he considered what to say.

"It hurts." He said, simply. Geordi's eyebrows shot up in astonishment.

"Really? How... you know, that would explain these readings..." He looked at the terminal that Data was wired to and pondered for a moment, before turning back to the android. "So what do you want to do about it?"

"I..." Data shook his head. "I do not know. Perhaps Doctor Crusher would be able to help?"

"I dunno Data, your physiology is so different from organic beings..." Geordi rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "Tell you what..." he tapped his combadge, "La Forge to Troi."

"Troi here," replied the mellow voice of the counsellor, "what can I do for you Geordi?"

"Could you join us down in engineering? Data's being troubled by some new sensations, I was hoping you might be able to clarify."

"Of course, I'm on my way. Troi out."

Geordi smiled down at Data, who was looking troubled.

"You do not believe me?"

Geordi sighed. "It's not that I don't believe you, it's just that all these feelings are so new to you. I just figured that Troi could tell us exactly what it is you're experiencing, and we can move on from there."

"I understand." Data held out his hand and Geordi, after a momentary hesitation, took it in his own. The android's strong fingers squeezed, and Geordi suddenly realised how miserable his friend was.

"Can I continue my work now, sir?" Said Jensen, returning with his arms full of equipment. Geordi sighed.

"Sure, go ahead." Geordi made for the nearest terminal only to be bought up short. Data had not released his hand. The android looked at him for a moment, and then loosened his hold.

* * *

The doors hissed open, and Deanna Troi strode into engineering. Her bright dark eyes sparkled as she looked around the department, taking in the atmosphere of focused activity. Her gaze alighted on the prone and damaged android and her eyes widened as the blood drained from her face. She hurried to the makeshift bed and put her hand on Data's shoulder.

"Data..." She was shocked at his appearance; his brutalised body upset her on a fundamental level. But the waves of emotion rolling off him were worse still. She felt all of his helpless panic, his fear over the severity of his condition, his embarrassment at his undignified situation... and as Jensen inserted a driver into the mangled stump of one of his legs, she felt the red-hot wave of pain crash through him.

"Stop!" She cried, shoving the young engineer in the chest. Jensen stumbled back with a cry, the driver spinning away to land with a clatter on the floor as the heads of half a dozen engineers swivelled to regard the disturbance with surprise.

"Geordi, a word, now!" She was already moving away towards a side room. Geordi looked back at his team.

"Alright everyone, back to work! Nothing to see here."

"No!" Deanna whirled round and pointed at Jensen. "Don't you touch him!"

"With all due respect," Jensen replied, without any, "This work is extremely high priority..."

"It is alright, Counsellor," Data interrupted, "his work is vital. I will be 'all right' for the moment."

Troi looked at the android in sympathy, and then nodded to the young man.

"I apologise for my behaviour. Please, continue your work." She murmured through tight lips.

As main engineering fell back into busy silence, she dragged Geordi into the small ante room.

"Geordi, it's awful! He's..."

"In pain. Yeah, he said." Geordi looked troubled, and Troi felt like shaking him.

"He _told_ you? And you let them work on him? Geordi, how could you?" Two high spots of colour had risen to her cheeks. Geordi had the sense to look embarrassed.

"Look, I'm sorry, but it's like I said, I wanted you to confirm what he was telling me! I mean, it's so fantastical..."

"Nevertheless, he's telling the truth. We have to do something, I won't let him suffer." Troi folded her arms.

"I don't know what we _can_ do. It's not like we can give him painkillers, I'm not shutting him down, and we can't switch off his sensors, the readout is vital to us to make sure we're putting him back right!" Geordi paced around the room, as if movement would help him think. "I'm fresh out of ideas."

"You can't carry on, it's like performing surgery without anaesthetic." Troi looked thoughtful. "Have you spoken to Beverly? Perhaps she'll have some ideas. She knows Data's systems well enough."

Geordi chewed his lip. "It's worth a try. Could you go to medical and explain? I know she's got the other casualties, I don't want to drag her away unless she comes up with something."

"Alright." Troi began pacing to the turbolift. "And Geordi?"

"Yeah?"

"Look after him."

* * *

Beverly Crusher hurried into main engineering, hypospray in hand. She made a beeline for Geordi who was hovering over a monitor.

"I think I've got something." She said, brandishing the medicine. Geordi grinned widely.

"Great! What have you come up with?"

"Well," Crusher looked pensively over to where the engineers were bustling around the android, "if I'm right, it should work well, but I don't think you're going to like the side effects."

"Doc, if it works, I'm happy. What is it?"

"It's the Tsiolkovsky Virus."

"Whoa!" Geordi stepped away from her, hands in the air, as if he could ward off the infection with his sweating palms. Crusher shook her head.

"Don't worry!" She tried to reassure him. "It's been modified. It's not contagious, there's no way it can spread to you, or anyone else here. It'll only affect Data."

"But... you're proposing we get him drunk? That's the best you've got?"

Crusher pursed her lips. "We know he's affected by it, and I've nothing else in the med store that would work at all on an android. If you've got any better ideas, I'd love to hear them. If it stops him from suffering, then I've done my job, so you and your team can do yours."

Geordi ran his hands over his face. "Fine! I'll brief my team while you administer it."

Geordi called the engineers over to explain, and Crusher made her way to the grav-sled holding up the prone android officer.

"Data, how are you feeling?"

"I think it would be fair to say that I have been better." He was obviously unhappy, his brow lined and his lips narrowed. She frowned in sympathy.

"I've got something to help. The Tsiolkovsky Virus. Intoxication has been proven to assist with pain management. Obviously it's not something I would _ever_ normally administer, but owing to your unique physiognomy..."

"I understand, Doctor. Thank you."

She pressed the hypo to his neck.

* * *

"I know this is probably going to be weird, but please, remember that he is still your superior officer, and treat him with the respect he deserves. And nothing he says or does while he's under the influence of the virus leaves this department, you got that? Nothing!"

There was a chorus of 'aye's from his team, and they all set back to work with alacrity as Crusher pocketed the now empty hypospray and made her way out. As she passed Geordi she put a hand to his arm.

"It's done. It might take a minute for it to start working, I've had to weaken the strain. If you need more, call me."

"Alright, thanks doc." He patted her hand where it lay on his arm, and they parted to go their separate ways, Crusher back to her casualties and Geordi back to his. He looked at the readout on the monitor.

"Huh, looks like it's having some effect, these readings are levelling off. How're you feeling?"

"I feel fine, Geordi." Data certainly looked better, although Geordi thought that the android's golden eyes looked unusually bright.

"O...kay, good to know. You let me know if..."

"Rest assured, Geordi, that I will alert you immediately if there is any change in my status towards the negative. And, might I add, what a splendid job everyone is doing! Young Jessica Hesling is doing marvellous work on my damaged sensor clusters, she has a remarkably steady hand!"

Hesling glanced up from her work, blushing furiously. "Thank you sir. It's an honour to be working on such an advanced machine." She went, if possible, even redder as she added, "Not that I think of you as..."

"No no, it is quite all right, I _am_ a machine, and thank you for the compliment!" Data raised an arm to wag one pale finger in the woman's face as he added, "And you yourself are a remarkable machine, albeit of a biological nature. Do not forget that!" He looked up at Geordi. "Do you know that if I were a human, I would be healed by now, and they would be fitting me with bionic prosthetic legs? Do you not find that ironic?"

Geordi sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "Yeah, you're drunk all right."

"I am not just drunk!" Data waved his hand to indicate the damage, "I am legless!"

"No puns! Absolutely not! And don't laugh!" Geordi rounded on Fisk, who was snorting with suppressed giggles, "You'll only encourage him!"

"Fine." Data huffed, folding his arms. "No puns. Is anyone here familiar with the works of Flanders and Swann?"

* * *

Over the course of the next hour Data regaled them with select songs from his vast repertoire, including a rousing rendition of "The Major-General's song", which he then sang at double speed, much to the amusement of Tramin, and "First and Second Law", which he insisted on teaching to Fisk, who proved to everyone's astonishment to have a rather pleasant light tenor voice.

Geordi clicked his visor off and sighed heavily as he rubbed his temples. This was certainly turning out to be an eventful day. If he had thought he'd end up with a drunken Data on his hands, he never would have gotten out of bed.

"We could always deactivate him." Murmured Jensen. Geordi snapped his visor back into place and glared at him.

"I'm going to pretend you didn't say that, ensign." He growled. "He's already been shut down once today, and he hates it nearly as much as I hate doing it. Not an option."

The blonde man's brows came together. "With respect sir, it would make our work much easier..."

"Oh lay off, Lars," said Tramin, walking past with a crate of replicated spare parts, "at least he's a happy drunk!"

Jensen scowled at the Bolian's back and went back to his station, his tasks mostly complete. Geordi watched him go, and his dark brow furrowed. That man was always just a step shy of insubordination. Talented and ambitious, but arrogant. He ran a hand through his hair and went reluctantly back to his inebriated friend.

"Hey, you doing okay?" He enquired. Data grinned beatifically.

"I am fine, Geordi. And I feel that I should let you know that you are looking particularly attractive today."

There was a snort of laughter from somewhere, but when Geordi looked up, all heads were down.

"Look, Data, just... will you keep the volume down? I'm getting a headache. No more singing, no..."

"Oh dear, poor Geordi!" Data's feathery brows came together in consternation. "Let me kiss it better!"

Before he could process the words, a pale hand had grabbed Geordi's collar and pulled. Reflexively he slapped one hand over Data's mouth, the other clutching the android's wrist.

"No! What the hell, Data?!" he yelped, an inch from Data's long nose. Golden eyes peered over his hand in confusion. "You can't... you... just... no!"

From beneath his hand a muffled voice replied, "Why not?"

Geordi ground his teeth and looked up at his crew.

"Not a word!" He barked.

* * *

In another hour they were ready to test Data's new lower legs. The virus had gradually worked its way out of his systems, and as it lost its potency Data's behaviour became less and less erratic. They noticed the change when he began apologising profusely for his conduct to anyone in earshot, and had to be reassured multiple times that nothing he had said or done whilst under the influence had caused any offense. Geordi kept his opinion to himself on that score, but still put his arm around Data to help him stand.

The android bounced up and down on the balls of his feet a few times.

"They seem to be functioning perfectly." He stated, talking a step. His knee buckled, and Geordi was pulled almost off his feet as Data stumbled sideways before regaining his balance.

"They will, of course, require some calibration." Data mused. Geordi rolled his eyes under his visor.

"I think you're still a bit drunk." He muttered. Data hummed in assent and looked round the room at the engineering crew.

"I thank you all for your assistance. Your work today has been exemplary, and I would be most gratified if you would all join me in the lounge bar this evening after your shift for a celebratory drink. I feel that you have all earned it."

"Yeah, I should say so!" Geordi nodded, "As long as none of you get as drunk as Data was. Now, I'm gonna get him back to his quarters, and you all can get on with your regular duties."


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter Four; Veritas

_Veritas. Noun. 1. Honesty. 2. Sincerity. 3. Truth._

* * *

The door to Data's quarters slid open, and Geordi followed the android in. He folded his arms and watched his friend seat himself at his personal terminal and begin his log of the day's events.

"Well?" He said pointedly. Data looked up, although his fingers continued to dance across the screen.

"Well what?" He enquired. Geordi threw his hands up in irritation.

"Whaddaya mean 'what'? I'm waiting for you to explain why the hell you came on to me!"

Data's pale brow creased, and he dropped his hands to the desk.

"Because I wanted to. My inhibitions were gone, and..."

"Data, all my staff were watching! Who knows what they're going to be saying behind my back!" He began to pace around the room, agitated. "There's gonna be rumours..."

"I do not see why there should be." Data said mildly. "It was obvious that you were the innocent party in the encounter, and that I was very clearly intoxicated."

"You don't just try to kiss your best friend for no reason!" Geordi snapped. Data cocked his head.

"Are you aware of the Latin phrase 'in vino veritas'?" the android said. Geordi glared at him.

"Okay, I'll bite." He said after a moment. "What does that mean?"

"'In wine, truth'." Data quoted. Geordi looked at the floor, considering.

"So, when someone's drunk, they're more likely to tell the truth?"

"The implication is that inebriation enables a person to behave in a manner more consistent with their true feelings." Data's voice was low and sincere, and when Geordi looked up at him he was staring at one of his paintings, apparently unwilling to look at the human standing in his quarters. Geordi put a hand to his forehead and groaned.

"Data... are you _really_ trying to tell me that you're attracted to me?"

The android turned to regard him with his bright golden eyes. "Do you still doubt that I know my own feelings?"

"No, it's not that, it's just..." Geordi began to pace again, self-conscious. "You're my best friend!"

"Does that somehow negate any other feelings I may have towards you?"

"It's a big deal Data!" Geordi huffed. "We're close, yeah, but... You feel romantically towards me?"

"Am I to take it, then, that these feelings are not reciprocated?"

There it was, the one question he had been hoping to avoid. Geordi looked at his android friend. Those wide, childlike eyes hiding his vast intelligence, the bland innocent face completely without guile or artifice. Data had the strength of a titan, and the emotional stability of a toddler.

He could lie. It would be easier, in the long run. Anything else would complicate things. Or, a half-truth? Would Data be able to tell if he lied?

"It's not..." Geordi looked up at the ceiling and sighed. Truth, then. "It's not that I _don't_ find you attractive. But you're my friend! Once you step over the line, there's no going back. Everything changes. Trust me, I know. I'd rather keep you as a friend, than cross that boundary and end up not being able to look you in the eye afterwards."

"You are concerned that if we were to become romantically involved and then decide that we were incompatible as a couple, that we would subsequently be unable to regain our friendship?"

"Right." Geordi turned away, rubbing the back of his neck. His headache was getting worse. He _really_ wished he had stayed in bed.

"Is it not said, that it is better to have loved and lost, than..."

"NO!" Geordi whirled around to face the android. "You don't start talking about love after one drunken attempt at a kiss! You have no idea what you're talking about! You don't know the first thing about what it feels like to be in love, and you don't get to quote Shakespeare at me to try and prove a point!" Geordi took a deep breath and regarded the android, whose mouth was hanging open in astonishment.

"Geordi..." Data began, but the engineer put up a hand to stop him.

"That's enough, Data. I don't want to talk about this any more, you understand? It's not going to happen, so just... drop it. I've got work to do."

Geordi turned and began to stalk back to engineering. No doubt they would all be having a good laugh down there at his expense. As the door opened and he made to exit, Data asked,

"Will I see you in the lounge bar this evening?"

Geordi stopped in the doorway, fists clenched at his side. He shook his head.

"I don't know, Data. I'll see how I feel." He strode away down the corridor.

Data sat in silence for a moment. His cat sprung up into his lap and he stroked her absent-mindedly, before looking down at her.

"I am sure that _you_ are aware that the quote ''Tis better to have loved and lost, than never to have loved at all' was not from Shakespeare, but is in fact by Alfred Lord Tennyson." Spot purred rhythmically, and Data quirked his head at her. "Although perhaps not, because you are just a cat."

* * *

The bar was busy that night, and Data had to push through several knots of people before he found the group of engineers. Geordi was leaning on the bar talking animatedly with Fisk, and the others seemed engrossed in their conversation. As soon as Data appeared however, they raised a ragged cheer, causing heads to turn to investigate the cause of the celebration.

"Look at you! You'd never know there was ever anything wrong!" Data felt a hand slap him on the back, and turned to regard Commander Riker, grinning at him over a drink.

"I am glad to see you well, sir." Data replied, although he smiled in return. Riker's grin widened.

"I understand I have you to thank for my rescue. If you hadn't uncovered me, the med team said they wouldn't have been able to move the debris. Oh! And Daniels wanted me to tell you he's mending well, and to thank you from him. He'll be good as new in no time. T'mir is already back to work."

Data shook his head. "I did what anyone would do under the circumstances. And I failed to rescue Ensign Singh."

Riker's grin faded, his face darkened. "You did more than anyone could have expected of you. It's not your fault she died, her injuries were too severe. Even if you had gone to her first, there's no way she would have lived." He put a companionable hand on Data's shoulder. "We'll miss her, like we miss everyone who leaves us, but don't you start blaming yourself. Focus on your achievements, and your own progress. I hear your legs were almost completely gone!"

"That is not entirely true, sir. Whilst..." Anything more he was going to say was lost as he was grabbed by the elbow and pulled into the gaggle of engineers. Somebody pressed a drink into his hand, somebody somewhere quipped that they thought he'd 'had enough already today', and there was a chorus of greetings and congratulations. Data, momentarily disoriented by the babble, looked to Geordi for support. The dark man was beaming round at his crew, but the smile faltered as Data met his gaze. Geordi turned back to the bar and poured himself another drink from some unnamed bottle as someone somewhere shouted "Speech!"

"Me?" Data queried. "A speech about what?"

"You!" "The rescue!" "YOUR LEGS!" There was a peal of laughter at the suggestion, and Data felt a ripple of amusement pass through him. All thoughts of the darkness, the fear and pain he had experienced, were washed away by the bright soap-bubble feeling of laughter. Humour was something he knew now, and he loved it. Humour he could do.

He placed his glass on the bar in order to bend down and roll up the legs of his uniform. There was a gale of laughter, and someone wolf-whistled. Data reclaimed his glass and struck a pose.

"My legs have always been there to support me." There was a groan. He continued on, his speech punctuated with laughs, jeers and cat-calls. "However today, they came up short. Luckily you fine engineers were here to get me back on my feet, and now recovery is just a short step away. I am once again ready to leap into action and put my best foot forward thanks to you, for without your hard work, I would not have a leg to stand on. I shall go out on a limb and say that today, you have all made great strides, and your accomplishments are staggering. To the engineers!" He raised his glass, and the engineers replied with "To Data's legs!"

As he sipped his drink, Data glanced over at Geordi, who had his elbows on the bar and his head in his hands. His shoulders were shaking, and Data hoped it was with laughter. Riker clapped him on the back again, his bearded face creased with humour, and then his free hand was being shaken by Tramin, congratulating him on a truly humorous speech, and enquiring whether the calibrations had been a success. The engineers peppered him with questions, and Data noticed that only Jensen was absent. He felt a surge of pleasure that so many of them had seen fit to meet him here, in a social place. He chatted animatedly with them all, answering their questions tirelessly. Still, every so often he glanced over at Geordi. He was talking with the bartender about something, Data couldn't quite tell what, and he looked unhappy. Data wondered if Geordi was still angry with him, but then Hesling boldly put her hand on his arm and asked him another question about his internal systems, all the while blushing furiously, which made her freckles stand out in contrast.

* * *

"So what's the problem? If you like him, go for it!" The young barman said. Geordi groaned. He had hoped that a few drinks would dull his headache, but it was becoming increasingly clear that the only thing that would help was rest. Still, he wasn't ready to go back to his quarters, not just yet. They'd notice if he bailed on the party too early, and they were all having a good time. Damn, it must be obvious he was upset about something. He gave himself a shake and straightened up.

"It's not that simple. It's never simple. I've never had a relationship work out, and this... no, it's too weird."

"Too weird?" The barman scoffed. "Pardon me sir, but that's a crummy excuse." Someone at the other end of the bar caught his eye and he scurried away, leaving Geordi scowling down into his drink. He topped it up from the bottle again and decided that, headache or not, he was going to enjoy himself. And if that meant getting roaring drunk to try and forget what a terrible day it had been, so be it.

* * *

The conversations ebbed and flowed around him, and Data found himself enraptured by the social whirl. Riker dropped in and out of the various groups, his easygoing manner making it simple for him to involve himself in any conversation, his booming laugh infectious. Even Geordi seemed to have come out of his slump, and was chatting away merrily with anyone within earshot. Data had just decided that he would go and talk to his friend to find out what had been troubling him, when Geordi pushed himself up from the barstool he'd been sitting on. He stretched his back with a groan and declared "That's it for me!" There was a chorus of disappointment, requests for him to stay, but Geordi shook his head. The act seemed to make him unsteady somehow, and he staggered sideways as he stepped forward. Almost instantaneously Data was by his side, holding his elbow.

"Geordi, are you well? You appear to be suffering from a loss of equilibrium."

"I'm fine, just a little dizzy that's all. It's this headache... I just wanna get to bed."

"Do you wish for me to accompany you to your quarters in case you suffer from any further dizziness?" Data was concerned. This wasn't like Geordi, he didn't usually become dizzy when he had a headache. He wondered uneasily if this was a symptom of some other underlying problem. Geordi flapped his hands.

"No no no, I'm fine, really." He tugged his arm free, and promptly tripped over the leg of a chair. Data's hand shot out, and once again the android stopped Geordi from falling.

Now Data was really worried. No wonder Geordi had been out of sorts, he was obviously ill.

"I will accompany you to ensure you get to your quarters safely." He declared and, despite Geordi's weak protestations, the android put one arm around the engineer and steered him towards the door.

"And he was the one who told _us_ not to get drunk!" Observed Tramin, to which the others responded with a chorus of amused agreement.

* * *

Data helped Geordi through the door and onto the couch, where the engineer collapsed in a giggling heap. Data regarded him quizzically.

"Geordi, I do not know why you are finding this so amusing, you are obviously unwell."

"Data, it's fine." Geordi clicked off his visor and sighed as he rested his head on the back of the couch. "I just want a glass of water, and then bed. Glad I'm not on the roster tomorrow."

Data bought him the water and watched him drink it. He found himself studying Geordi's mouth as his lips pressed against the glass.

"Okay, give me a hand up." Geordi put out his arm and Data hauled him out of his seat. Geordi fell against the android's chest, giggling. He tilted his face upwards and pouted his lips. "Whaddaya wanna do now?"

"I..." Data was mystified by this new behaviour. "I want you to go to bed?" He tried. Geordi chuckled and arched an eyebrow.

"You gonna join me?" The engineer bunched the front of Data's uniform in his fists, and crashed their mouths together.

Data was stunned. Only a few short hours ago, Geordi had been adamant in his insistence that they not engage in any romantic contact, and now his soft lips were on his and his hand was slipping round his neck and it felt so good, _so good_...

The android gasped as Geordi's fingers found their way into his hair, and Geordi took advantage of his open mouth and let his tongue wander, insistent and forceful. Data's nostrils were filled with his scent; he was drowning in the astonishing tactile sensory information of supple skin and hot mouth and the aggressive movements of that slick wet tongue and the taste of his lips, and the taste of the alcohol...

"Geordi!" He gasped, pushing him away. Geordi stumbled backwards to flop onto the bed.

"Ooh, getting bossy, huh? That's okay, I can..."

"No, Geordi, you are intoxicated!"

"So?" The engineer sat up, looking but not seeing with his pale sightless eyes. Data frowned deeply. This was not a situation he had anticipated. His head was swimming with the surging emotions and the rush of new sensory data, and Geordi was drunk and wanted him and... and it was too much.

"I am going to my own quarters." Data turned to leave.

"Hey, no, wait! Come on, let me... at least let me talk!" Geordi was sitting on the edge of the bed, arms outstretched. Data thought about how easy it would be to fall into those arms, push him back onto the bed... He shuddered.

"I do not think that talking will resolve this situation. I should leave."

"Damn it, Data!" Geordi rubbed the back of his neck and sighed. Of all the times for the android to be stubborn! "Look, I know I said that I didn't want a relationship with you, and, well, that's true, but, y'know, there's lots of stuff two people can do that isn't..." He waved his hands vaguely. "I... I gotta use the bathroom. Stay here!" He pointed at Data. "I'm not done talking at you. With you, I mean!"

* * *

Data sat on the couch and began to analyse what had just happened. The precise amount of pressure that Geordi had used to press their mouths together, the chemical content of the man's saliva, the temperature of his skin... The emotions, the feelings that had surged through him in that moment. Deeper than affection, deeper than _want_ or _desire_, it was an almost physical sensation of _need_. The way Geordi's fists had felt, the knuckles pressing into his chest, the surge of lust that had almost overwhelmed him. He shivered, remembered the hand in his hair...

* * *

"Okay, I'm back, you'd better still be here." Geordi stumbled back into the room, heading the wrong way. Data stood and took his arm to guide him to his bed. Geordi fell onto the mattress gratefully, and held his arms up.

"C'mere."

Data ground his teeth. "No. You said you wanted to talk."

"Pfft! I'm done talking! I wanna kiss you again!" Geordi smiled. Data heaved a sigh.

"Geordi, you said that you did not desire romantic contact..."

"Oh, _desire_ it, yes! Is it a good idea? Probably not. Fuck, Data, I always thought you were kinda cute, I just... I didn't know how... I mean, I've never been with a man before, y'know? So I'm like, whatever, I'm crushing a bit on a co-worker, but then you say you have these feelings and, I... I... I dunno, I guess... I just wanna fool around a bit, see where this goes. You with me?"

_Yes, oh yes I am with you, and your mouth on mine and your tongue and your wandering hands and the firmness of your body pressed against mine and_

"No, Geordi. Not now, not like this. You are not capable of informed consent. I will remain here if you wish, but I refuse to engage in any further physical contact with you until you are sober enough to make the decision with clarity." In that moment, Data thought that those were the hardest words he had ever had to say.

Geordi groaned and fell back onto the bed. He kicked his boots off and rolled into the covers still fully clothed.

"Okay, fine, I pour my heart out and that's it? Fine. Stay. Go. Whatever. I'm going to sleep."

Data stood for a moment, looking down at the man cocooned in the sheets. He turned and made his way quietly to the door.

"Data?" Geordi mumbled.

"Yes Geordi?" Data turned.

"Please stay."

"... Very well."

Data sat back down on the couch and soon, the room was filled with Geordi's sleepy breathing. Data swivelled round and lay down along the length of the couch, his head on the arm. He folded his hands across his chest and smiled.

In vino veritas indeed.


	5. Chapter 5

Dyrnwyn; The Blade that Blazes Only for the Worthy Man

Chapter One; Aegrota

_Aegrota. Adjective. 1. Love-sick, pining. 2. Ill, sick._

* * *

Geordi woke with a groan. So much for the alcohol helping his head. His temples were throbbing like the warp core. His mouth was dry, his tongue sandpapery. He fervently hoped that he had gotten back to his own quarters because he was pretty sure that as soon as he moved, he was going to throw up.

"Good morning Geordi."

Oh no.

_Oh no._

"H... Hey, Data."

Okay, keep calm, try and remember. They had been at the bar, he drank too much, Data took him to his quarters... and was still here. Had they...? No, he was sure he'd remember. But something had happened...

_Oh no!_

"Um, do you know where my visor is?"

"It is over here, you left it on the couch last night. Shall I bring it to you?"

"Yes please." Geordi's voice was thick, his tongue felt like it belonged to someone else, and as Data pressed the visor into his hand, Geordi's stuttering brain provided him with the tactile memory of a tongue belonging to someone else...

_OH NO!_

He snapped the visor on and hurried into the bathroom, avoiding the android's concerned gaze.

* * *

In the end he wasn't sick, he just hovered over the sink trembling and gagging. He took his visor off and splashed his face with water, swilled his mouth and spat to get rid of the miserable taste of his own stale breath. He snapped the visor back on and looked at himself blearily in the mirror.

"You fucking idiot, La Forge." He berated himself. He would stay in the bathroom forever, because that meant that he would never have to look at that face, those eyes, never have to explain. He would sit there on the cold floor and wait for the inevitable heat death of the universe.

He sighed deeply and left the bathroom.

* * *

Data stood again as Geordi stumbled back to his bed. The android crossed the room to where the engineer lay groaning, a light sheen of sweat across his dark forehead.

"Geordi? Are you well?"

"No, no I'm not. I... I had too much to drink last night."

"Ah. You are suffering from the after-effects of the overconsumption of alcohol, known as a hangover. I will get a glass of coconut water for you."

The glass was placed gently on the table beside his head, and Geordi rolled over to look at the android. Data cocked his head.

"My research suggests that this would be a suitable beverage for you, as it contains many vitamins and nutrients and will also help to rehydrate you. It is also suggested that you consume some high carbohydrate food, preferably something bland, to help to combat your nausea. How do you like your oatmeal?"

"Uh..." Data was making him breakfast. He really wished he was thinking more clearly, but this pounding in his head was overwhelming. "... With honey?"

Data nodded and went to the replicator. Geordi lay his head back down and tried to ignore the feeling that someone had been tampering with the inertial dampers.

Data returned with a gently steaming bowl. Geordi hauled himself up and jammed a pillow behind his back.

"I really don't feel like eating." He grumbled as Data pressed the bowl and a spoon into his hands.

"Nevertheless," Replied the android, "it will be beneficial. You do not have to eat it all." He conceded magnanimously. "My research into the phenomenon of supposed hangover cures has proved most enlightening, there is a fascinating array of folk remedies purported to be of assistance in alleviating the symptoms of excessive alcohol consumption. The Prairie Oyster, for example, is a raw egg yolk with Worcestershire sauce, which should be swallowed whole, whilst Hungarians used to believe that sparrow droppings in brandy would serve as a cure. The ancient Romans recommended deep fried canaries, and Italians suggest a dried bull's penis..."

"Okay, that's it." Geordi put the bowl on the side table with a thump and stumbled back into the bathroom.

This time he did throw up.

* * *

"Hey, there's my hero!" Lieutenant Daniels grinned up from the biobed at Data as he walked into the medical department. Data returned the smile.

"Lieutenant Daniels. I am glad to see you looking well. Is Doctor Crusher here?"

"Sure!" Daniels jerked his thumb in the direction of her office. "Don't leave without saying goodbye to me, it's getting pretty boring just lying here!"

Data assured Daniels that he would return and strode into the doctor's office, where Crusher was poring over some notes on a PADD. She looked up as he entered, and her expression brightened.

"Data! Good to see you up and about! What can I do for you?"

"Good morning, Doctor. Might I requisition a hypospray containing an analgesic?"

Crusher frowned. "Are you still experiencing pain?"

"No, I am quite well. It is for Geordi."

"Oh! Sure, I'll get you something for him." Crusher stood and began rummaging through her store of pre-prepared hypos. "What's the problem?"

Data's eyes flicked back and forth for a moment before he answered. "He has a headache."

Crusher glanced at him with one eyebrow raised. "You mean he has a hangover?"

Data's eyes flickered again. "I... I am not sure of..."

"Data..." Crusher sighed as she fished out the relevant hypo. "You don't have to cover for him, I know there was real alcohol going around the bar last night, he's not the only one suffering this morning. I hope he's learned his lesson." She handed him the hypo, and he looked at her strangely.

"I think it is safe to say that the effects of his inebriation will leave a lasting impression."

* * *

Geordi had finished the oatmeal and the coconut water when Data got back, and he sighed with relief as the android pressed the hypo to his neck. He clicked off his visor and fell back onto the bed, his headache finally fading. Damn, he had all but forgotten what it felt like not to have that thumping pressure in his skull. He felt Data's nimble fingers slip the visor out of his hand and heard the gentle click as it was placed on the table next to him.

"Rest now, Geordi. I will come back and check on you later."

* * *

Data spent what remained of the morning and into the afternoon in his quarters, answering personal messages, entertaining his cat when she permitted it, and running a thorough system analysis on himself. Not that he didn't trust the engineers, but he had found that he felt better when he made sure of such things himself. He was grateful that the captain had suggested he take some time for himself before returning to his duties.

When the time came for him to update his personal log he hesitated. It was a rare occurrence for one such as he, but he discovered that, for once, he had no idea what to say. The whole situation that he had become embroiled in over the last day had left him terribly confused.

"Second Officer's personal log; I find myself in something of a predicament regarding my colleague and friend Geordi. His behaviour has been most confusing and his opinions on the matter contradictory. If this is the way that all humans go about their relationships, I am not sure that this is a part of humanity that I wish to imitate. He has been by turns provocative, hostile, evasive, contrary and... The whole experience has been... Stimulating."


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter Two; Calesco

_Calesco. Verb. 1. Be heated. 2. Be inspired. 3. Become inflamed with lust. 4. Become hot._

* * *

When Data went back to Geordi's quarters to check on the engineer's condition, he was surprised to find him sitting at his personal terminal.

"Hey Data, sit down, I'll be with you in a moment." Data did as he was bidden as Geordi finished the report.

"It appears that you are feeling better." Data remarked. Geordi smiled and tapped the screen decisively.

"Done! Yeah, much better. Hey, thanks for taking care of me. Listen, I... I want to apologize for last night, I acted like an ass..." Geordi joined the android on the couch, trying to be casual.

"It is quite all right. You were not in control of your actions." Data looked pointedly at Geordi, who squirmed under the scrutiny of the android's lambent eyes.

"Look... this isn't easy for me. I feel really awkward about what happened, and I know I put you in a tough situation. Honestly, I've never considered anything like this before, and I'm... kinda freaked out. I'm not sure I know what I want to do now."

Data quirked his head and pondered for a moment.

"It would seem to me," He replied after a pause, "that there are two logical courses of action that could be taken. We could remain friends, and blame our recent... indiscretions... on our respective intoxications. This would seem to be statistically the most likely course of action for maintaining a healthy and harmonious friendship and working environment."

"Yeah, you're probably right." It was the right decision, Geordi knew. He had run through a dozen different ways that he could tell Data that it was impossible, that it wasn't going to work, to let him down gently. So why, when it was Data saying it, did it seem so unfair?

"Our second option is to continue to explore this new facet of our relationship with each other, and try to ascertain whether entering into a more formal romantic rapport would be mutually beneficial. This does of course carry the potential risk of eventual disappointment upon discovery of incompatibility, and may ultimately cause friction in our professional relationship."

Geordi was silent for a long moment, hands clasped in his lap, looking down at his interlaced fingers. He took a deep breath and blew it through his nose before looking at the android sat next to him, spine ramrod straight, hands flat-palmed on knees.

"What do you want to do?" Geordi asked.

"I want very much to kiss you again."

Geordi ran his hand through his hair. "I... I just don't think it's a good idea for us to get involved with each other like that. I suck at relationships, you're brand new to all of this... this whole situation has 'disaster' written all over it!"

"Last night..." Geordi made to interrupt, but Data held up his hand to stop him. "Last night," he continued, "you stated that you did not feel that you wanted a formal romantic relationship, that you wanted something casual, and perhaps temporary. You said you wanted to 'fool around', and to 'see where this goes'." Data tilted his chin up. "I am willing to attempt this."

* * *

Geordi looked at him then, as if seeing him for the first time. He took a moment to bask in the glow emanating from this wondrous being next to him, soaking up the shape of him, the proud set of his jaw and the look of determination in his golden eyes. The android's hands were still on his knees but he was gripping them fiercely, as if frightened of what he may do if he moved.

Geordi had fantasised about this moment, had pictured time and time again what he would do if the object of his desires laid himself before him and said 'take me, I am yours', but now that it was happening he found himself frozen. His heart was thundering in his chest so hard that it almost hurt to breathe, and he was all too aware of the heat spreading through his body. He couldn't do it, not with Data, it was a terrible idea. This was his best friend, damn it, he had tried so hard to stop thinking about him this way, and it was terrifying and wonderful to find these feelings reciprocated.

Data reached out and took his hand, and it was like a bolt of electricity down Geordi's spine when the android lifted it to his mouth and brushed his soft pale gold lips over the knuckles. And then Data was pulling him, gently, so gently, and he was falling towards him and that shimmering skin and the golden glow and the faint scent of warm machinery that always made Geordi's heart skip.

Their lips met, closed-mouthed and chaste, and Geordi was astonished by the pliant softness of the android's skin, the blush of warmth suffusing the mobile mouth that met his. His hand crept to Data's shoulder and the android responded in kind, drawing him nearer to deepen the kiss. Geordi put his hand to the back of Data's neck, the supple bioplast stippled with tiny hairs that made the android tremble as he brushed them. Data gasped as Geordi raked his fingers through the android's dark hair, and Geordi growled in pleasure when Data's hand slid under his shirt and around his waist. He slipped his tongue past Data's teeth and the android gave a sharp moan as the hot wetness slid into his mouth. His fingers clenched on Geordi's skin and the man pressed closer, their thighs side by side, chests almost touching. Geordi's hands pushed up the front of Data's shirt to caress his sculpted pectoral muscles, palms rubbing the delicately fashioned nipples. The android shuddered, sensory information flowing through the new chip and into his mind and flooding him with desires so intense that he was dizzied. He had wondered in the past why humans were so fixated on the sex act but now, as Geordi's tongue raked the roof of his mouth sending a jolt of pleasure burning through him, he began to understand. Unbidden, his sexuality program surged into life and took over, sweeping conscious thought aside and taking control of his movements. He sucked Geordi's lower lip into his mouth and teased the soft flesh with his teeth as his body responded to the alterations in neural pathways and re-routed circuitry. His breathing deepened, his pulse raced, and his fingers combed through Geordi's tightly curled hair. He was aware of an urgent aching between his legs, the jut of his desire prominent and pleading. He broke away from Geordi's mouth to fasten his lips around the man's neck, licking and nuzzling the velvet skin, tasting his salt sweat and his heat. Geordi's fingers dug into his chest and it was so good, it was so _good_, and he wanted, _needed_ more.

Geordi drew a shuddering breath as Data's tongue laved the line of his throat. The heat of his desire was insistent, his lust evident through the fitted uniform, but sitting side by side was not going to alleviate his desperate need for more contact, more friction. He was about to move when Data swung one leg over him and straddled his lap, his weight held carefully so as not to harm his fragile human almost-lover. The android pressed their bodies together and began to grind against him, their mouths exploring cheek, neck, temple. Geordi's hands slid up under Data's uniform to caress his back, and the android moaned and arched his spine like a cat, his own pale hands working on the fastenings of Geordi's uniform.

"Data..." Geordi managed to breathe. "I've never... I don't know..."

"I am programmed... please, trust me." The android murmured, lips brushing his ear.

"I don't think I want to, you know... go all the way... not now. Not yet." He had never felt another man's hardness against his own, and it was undeniably erotic, but intimidating in its unfamiliarity. He gritted his teeth and moaned as Data rocked his hips, the android's longing shining in his eyes.

"Please, Geordi, please, now... more." Data whispered, and a wave of lust swept through Geordi's body, leaving him gasping in its wake. "Bed." He growled and Data stood, and the sudden lack of contact made him moan in disappointment. The android was offering his hand, beckoning, and Geordi went with him, surrendering to his carnal instincts and grappling with the android's clothing as their lips clashed and their bodies met and parted on their way to fall onto the bed. Data stripped off Geordi's top and, while Geordi unfastened the android's jacket, began to kiss his way down the dark skin of his chest. He threw his top aside and drew one of the man's nipples into his mouth, worrying the bud between his teeth as Geordi moaned and squirmed. He licked down the soft skin of his stomach, and drew off the bottom half of Geordi's clothing in one swift movement, leaving him naked, shocked and trembling with need.

Data put his hands under Geordi's hips and drew him to the end of the bed, to kneel down between the man's legs. Geordi gazed down in wonder at this glowing being, this mechanical marvel. His mind was on fire, his body aching, and here was Data kneeling before him, practically immortal, virtually indestructible, and prepared to worship his frail human flesh with his mouth.

* * *

Data had never felt such an exquisite combination of sensations before. His mind whirled and danced with the joy of it all, and he soaked up and bathed in the information he was collecting; the thickness of the subcutaneous fat layer over the human's firm abdominal muscles, the elasticity of his silky skin, the musky smell that was all him. Data made a conscious decision not to perform an analytical chemical breakdown of the scent, and simply filed it away as _Geordi_ as his hands kneaded the man's firm thighs and his trembling lips met the tip of his lover's desire. Somewhere above and beyond him Geordi gasped, and Data had never been so glad to have a separate subroutine for his sexual behaviour, it was like instinct, his body was doing things _by itself_ and it was a wondrous feeling to allow his sexuality programming to do what it wanted as his mind spiralled away into ecstasy and his hand found his own need. He gripped himself as he slid his mouth down and over Geordi's heated flesh, and the man's hands tangled in his hair. He closed his golden eyes and tasted the liquid that had beaded from the slit, bitter and salt and so _human_ and musk filled his nostrils as he pressed himself down and swallowed his lover into his throat. Geordi cried out then, and Data began to experiment, alternating his techniques to find were to lick to make Geordi gasp, how hard to suck to illicit a groan, where to press his tongue to make the man's fingers clench in his hair. He looked up Geordi's body to watch his face, observed the glistening sweat on his chest, and Data thought that never before had he laid his hands on such a magnificent instrument, and no symphony could ever compare to the sounds made as he played this man with all his pre-programmed skill. He wallowed in these new sensations, in the depths of his desire as he indulged in his own pleasure for the first time, his whole being centred around this hot lust coursing through his neural net and the twin pillars of desire, his and the one belonging to the object of his affections, who was writhing with pleasure and gasping his name. Geordi's hips bucked and his cock throbbed in Data's mouth and he slid his hand faster over himself, the heat of his need in him like a coiled spring. He had no idea what to expect when his desire peaked, but he could feel something tight inside him, and any moment it would release and he felt that he might fly apart at the seams, and he drove his lover's cock deep down his throat and swallowed.

* * *

Geordi's throat was raw from his cries, his body slick with sweat, and he knew that he wouldn't last much longer. His hands left Data's hair to grip the sheets as his hips bucked, and another shout ripped through him as the android's throat closed around him and _pulled_, drawing him deeper and further with each convulsive throb. Data's clever mouth and strong mobile tongue lashed him with pleasure, and when at last he felt he couldn't take any more, he gasped Data's name in warning. Two golden eyes looked up at him, and then those lips dove down once, twice, and then the tip of his cock was being pressed into the roof of the android's mouth by his tongue, before being drawn once more into the hot, tight wetness of his throat. Geordi's world narrowed to that focal point and he convulsed as his orgasm ripped through him, his aching hardness jerking as he released himself into the android's throat with a cry. His whole body aligned in tension like a bowstring, and his mind blazed with exquisite pleasure so intense it was almost pain. He thrust himself up and into that magnificent feeling, pressing himself forward, chasing the tail end of the kaleidoscope of desire that had opened in his mind. As his ecstasy drained away he breathed his lover's name over and over, and felt his softening shaft leave that wonderful warm-wet mouth as Data gasped. Geordi raised his head to look down at the android, who was gazing up at him. Data's eyes were wide, his pupils so dilated that the golden irises were mere halos around the black depths.

* * *

There was something happening to him, and he had no control over it. It was a surging riptide of sensation that dragged and battered at him, and it was pleasure and aching lust and hot need and so good _so good_ and he couldn't stop and then it was too much and overwhelming superheated sparks exploding in his mind and that coiled spring didn't unwind it _shattered_ and he was floating and falling and it was _so good_ and he was terrified that he wouldn't be able to come back and he didn't ever want to come back and then he was nothing

* * *

"Data?" Geordi croaked, his voice husky and lust-strained.

Data whimpered, his eyes rolled back in their sockets, and he collapsed bonelessly to the floor.

"Data!" Geordi slid off the bed and stumbled to the fallen android. He felt strangely detached and hazy in the wake of his climax, but seeing Data lying in a heap on the floor staring open-mouthed at nothing bought Geordi back to himself faster than a bucket of ice water to the face. He crouched over the android, touched his face, called his name again.

Data shuddered, a convulsive spasm that wracked his body from head to toes. He drew a deep shuddering breath, and his pupils constricted and then focused on Geordi's anxious face.

"Oh..." The android breathed. "... Oh Geordi..."

"Come on, let's get you on the bed. You okay? What happened?" Geordi slung one of Data's arms around his shoulder and helped him up. The android seemed almost limp, could barely get his feet under himself. He flopped back onto the bed, breathing harsh and limbs twitching. Geordi watched him fearfully.

"Data, come on, talk to me! What's wrong?" He drew a sheet up over the two of them, suddenly conscious of their nakedness. Data's mouth opened again in a trembling sigh. He looked up at his lover, hovering over him nervously. The android reached up to caress the man's flushed cheek and stopped to watch the slow trickle of shimmering gold that was running down his pale wrist.

"Wh.. what is that? Data, what _happened_?" Geordi's visor was showing him a view of Data he had never seen before, the core of the android's body shining white as his processors overclocked in a bid to analyse the situation. The engineer could hear the whine of the machinery struggling. Data was no longer gasping, but his chest heaved as he gulped air to to cool his internal workings. The android dropped his hand and smiled.

"I... I believe that I overloaded and shut down temporarily as a reaction to the massive amount of sensory information that I was attempting to process."

"And... you're smiling? You're happy about that?"

"Geordi, I never wanted it to end."


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter Three; Perditus

_Perditus. Adjective. 1. Wild, abandoned. 2. Desperate. 3. Reckless._

* * *

"So you're telling me you've never... you know... had an orgasm before?"

"That is correct." Data was sitting on the edge of the bed pulling his shirt on. Geordi was still under the sheets, propped up on one elbow and regarding the android quizzically.

"But surely you must have... I mean, by yourself..."

"If you are referring to masturbation, I have never had the need before. Without desire, I was not able to become aroused, and without feeling, I could not experience climax."

"Yeah, but you've had the chip for a while now. You saying there hasn't been a time when you felt aroused since we installed it?" Geordi replied as he watched Data move around the room, gathering up his jacket and boots. The android sat back on the edge of the bed and looked at the engineer.

"I have, on several occasions, but the situations were such that I was not able to indulge the impulse."

Geordi laughed lightly. "Well, usually you just wait until you get back to your quarters and think about it then."

Data's hands paused in the action of pulling on his boots as he pondered.

"Perhaps when my shift is finished, I shall do so. I must go, I do not wish to be late."

"Oh, Data?" Geordi looked uncomfortable. "I... I think we should keep all of this to ourselves, you know? I don't want rumours spreading, and it might make work awkward... I think, just, keep it quiet, and it'll make things easier."

Data frowned. "I have not yet experienced a situation wherein the revelation of a relationship between two crewmembers has caused any significant change in..."

"Look, I just think it's a bit early, don't you? I mean, we don't know if this is going to last, or if it's just a fling... I don't want to be dealing with a bunch of questions. Besides, there's our ranks to consider... "

"I am aware of no restrictions in Starfleet's guidelines regarding relationships between..."

"Data, just... just don't tell anyone, okay?"

Data looked down at the floor pensively.

"As you wish." He said. He rose gracefully to his feet and strode out of the door.

* * *

Geordi flopped back onto the bed. He felt almost numb after spending himself so completely, and he knew there was something he wanted to remind Data of, but he couldn't for the life of him remember what it was. Instead, he found himself pondering with amazement the fact that he had never contemplated how supreme Data would be at providing pleasure, considering that he was pre-programmed with perfect technique and had no gag reflex or need to breathe.

* * *

Data was once again in complete control of himself as he walked out of the turbolift and onto the bridge ready to take over for the night shift. He glanced around the bridge as the various crew members left their stations and were relieved. Commander Riker rose from the command chair and froze, staring in shock at the android as Data strode towards him. Slowly Riker's face split into a wide grin. Data, confused, cocked his head. A lock of his hair flopped over his eyes and he lifted his hand to push it back into place. Then it was his turn to freeze. Shocked, he raked his fingers through his disorderly hair, almost disbelieving.

He had forgotten. He never forgot. How could he have left Geordi's quarters _without fixing his hair?_

Commander Riker put a hand to his shoulder and leant in close to murmur in his ear.

"Whoever she is, I'm happy for you. She must really be something to distract _you_!" He clapped the android on his shoulder. Data opened his mouth, then closed it again.

"Thank you, sir." He replied weakly, as he took the command chair.

* * *

The next day in engineering seemed like a breeze compared with the preceding few, and Geordi whistled as he worked, oblivious to the raised eyebrows and confused glances his uncommonly cheerful behaviour was eliciting. All was right with the universe, and the thrum of the warp core was music to his ears.

"Data to La Forge."

Well, it _had_ been a good day. He sighed, wondering what fresh hell this communication would bring. Data only ever commed him when something was wrong on the bridge, and judging by the tension in the android's voice, something was _really_ wrong.

"La Forge here. What's up?"

"Geordi..." It was almost a gasp. Geordi looked up from his screen in shock. "Geordi... There is something... very wrong..."  
"What with? Where are you?" Geordi was already moving, grabbing a case of tools on his way to the turbolift.

"I am in my quarters. It is me... there is something wrong with me."

"I'm on my way."

* * *

When Data admitted him to his quarters, Geordi found the android pacing rapidly from one side of the room to the other. He had one hand over his mouth, the other cupped around his elbow, his eyes were wide and anxious. Geordi stepped forward, the door shut behind him, and Data's head swung round and he fixed the engineer with his luminous gaze. Geordi was shocked by the state of the android, who was glowing as brightly as he had ever seen, white-hot at his core. He was panting, and the breaths he gasped out came wreathed in mist.

"Data..." Geordi had no time to say anything more as a hot mouth clamped over his and he was shoved into the wall. The tool case clattered to the floor as he put both hands to Data's chest, but it was like trying to move a mountain. Data pressed himself against the man, hands clawing at the cloth barrier between his burning body and his lover. Geordi cried out into his mouth in shock as Data ground ferociously into him, rutting like an animal. The android's head snapped back as his whole body went rigid, and he let out a shuddering cry as his hands bunched into the man's clothes. Geordi realised that Data had spent himself.

"What the hell? What the _hell_, Data?" He gasped, as the android stumbled away to slump onto the couch and lower his head into his hands.

"I am so, so sorry, Geordi." The android murmured into his palms.

"You'd better damn well be sorry! You call me up here from engineering for this? I thought something was really wrong!" Geordi bent to recover the tools, spilt over the floor.

"It was, it is... really wrong. Something is very wrong with me." Data mumbled. Geordi looked up at him. The searing white glow was dimming now as Data's system slowed, although his shoulders still heaved with his laboured breathing. Geordi shook his head and went to sit next to his friend.

"Okay, so talk to me. What's going on?" He put his arm around Data's shoulders, and the android lowered his hands. His cheeks were stained with tears.

"I have found a fault in my programming. I did not know... I had not tried before..." He gulped.

"Okay, calm down, and start at the beginning. You mind if I hook you up for a diagnostic?"

"Please, feel free." Data drew a trembling breath and wiped his face, and Geordi hooked his portable terminal to his temple port as he began explaining.

"Towards the end of my shift, I found myself becoming distracted by thoughts of an erotic nature regarding our congress last night. When my shift had finished, I decided to experiment as per your suggestion. I... I was not able to achieve orgasm through masturbation. I had to call for you when I realised I had a serious problem."

"Okay..." Geordi was tapping away at the screen and frowning. "Yeah... high power usage, high memory usage... I can't see any malfunction that would cause you to behave like you just did."

"No, you misunderstand. I have been attempting to stimulate myself to climax, but I have been unable to bring myself to completion. As a consequence I have become increasingly frustrated, until I felt I had no choice but to call for you. I shut down my sexual behaviour programming several times, but each time it reactivated. I am sorry to have treated you so roughly but..." Data stopped and drew another shuddering breath. Geordi looked up at him, eyebrows raised.

"You think this is a programming error? That you can't... self-satisfy?"

"I am unsure if it is an error, or a deliberate part of the sexuality programming. From my analysis, the only conclusion I can come to is that there is some sort of failsafe that means that I can only find satisfaction if I have a willing partner."

Geordi blew out a sigh. "That's a hell of a restriction. I can't imagine programming anything like that myself. Let me check your code." He tapped away in silence for a few minutes as Data's internal workings gradually returned to normal.

"Huh, I think you're right." Geordi muttered, staring at the screen. "It seems to be hard-coded into the programming. That's... that's kinda sick."

"If it is a part of my basic programming, it is likely that it was not intended to cause me any discomfort or inconvenience, as I was not programmed with emotional awareness. In the absence of desire and longing, and with no capacity to feel pleasure, it is simply a means to ensure that I cause no harm."

"Yeah, but _with_ those feelings and emotions, it's gonna be a real problem for you."

"I do not see why. I will simply refrain from contemplating anything likely to cause arousal until I am with a willing partner."

Geordi snorted sceptically. "If you really think that'll work. I know that when I'm in the mood, _everything_ reminds me of sex." He reached up and disengaged the cable from Data's access port and smoothed the panel down. He took the opportunity to run his fingers through the android's hair, and was rewarded with a gasp. Data put his hand up to clasp Geordi's, and guided it down onto the back of his neck.

"Everything? Are you... contemplating it now?" Whispered the android. Geordi's heart thumped.

"I wish I wasn't, I've got to get back to engineering."

"Do not go, not yet. Please." Data put a hand on Geordi's leg, and he felt his body react to the firm touch of that pale hand.

"You, my friend, are going to have to learn some restraint." The engineer growled as he put his arm around the android's waist. "But maybe you can learn restraint afterwards."

* * *

Thankfully for both of them, Data's problem only surfaced a couple more times over the next few weeks, although one of those instances did involve Geordi being unceremoniously dragged into a Jeffries tube. Geordi was relieved to find that there were no rumours, no knowing glances or jibes. The fact that Data spent time in Geordi's quarters went totally unremarked upon for the simple fact that it was no more than usual, although now they spent a good deal less time talking about work. Commander Riker was still convinced that Data had a beautiful beau hidden somewhere on the ship and went to great lengths to try and tease the name out of him, but the android was unexpectedly closed lipped about his activities outside of work. Riker was perplexed by this, as Data had always been open and honest, even eager, to talk about all aspects of his life outside of his duties. Now, he seemed cagy, almost nervous about revealing any detail, no matter how seemingly insignificant. Of course, this only made Riker more determined to weasel the information out of him.

Data, for his part, was beginning to understand what Geordi had meant about the 'unending questions', but failed to see why his lover was so insistent on keeping their liaisons a secret. There were many kinds of relationships accepted on the ship, from monogamous marriages to inter-species flings, and a homosexual dalliance was hardly out of the ordinary. Data resolved to bring the issue up again, at a suitable moment. He wanted to share his experiences and anxieties with his friends, and get their help with some of the trickier aspects of human relationships. But, a secret was a secret, Geordi had asked him not to tell anyone, and if he did not change that opinion then Data would take that secret to the grave.

* * *

He pressed the chime, heard the voice invite him in, and stepped into Geordi's quarters.

The engineer was at his personal terminal, filling out the day's report. "Hey Data." He half turned in his seat. "I'll be with you in a moment, just gotta finish up here."

He turned back to the screen and carried on with his typing as soft lips planted a kiss on his throat and two pale hands slid across his shoulders and down his chest.

"I _said_..." He growled, "I've got to finish this." He tried to ignore the way his body was responding to the android's skilful touch but it was getting increasingly difficult as those gold-tinted lips plucked gently at his ear, and the nimble fingers slid under the waistband of his pants.

"When is your report due?" Data's voice was low and breathy in Geordi's ear, and he shivered at the sound of the lust in his lover's words.

"Tomorrow afternoon." He replied, reaching up with one hand to grab the android's neck and scratch at the base of his skull, where it made him tremble. The android sighed in response.

"Then it can wait." Data said decisively, swivelling the chair to straddle his lover. Geordi laughed and pulled him in for a kiss.

"Since when did _you_ think there was anything more important than work?" Geordi murmured, grabbing the android's hips to guide his movement as Data removed his jacket.

"Since I discovered that there were activities that I found much more pleasurable." Data replied, stripping his lover's upper body swiftly and efficiently and running his hands appreciatively over the dark skin revealed. He rocked his hips once more, then slid off Geordi's lap to kneel before him and fumble with his pants. Geordi grabbed his pale wrists, and Data looked up quizzically.

"No." Geordi was smiling as he pulled Data up, rising with him. "My turn." He led the android to the bed and lay him down, falling onto him to bring their mouths together as their hands explored each other's bodies. Data had mapped every millimetre of his lover's body, had every part of him catalogued, but he still found fascination in the tactile feedback from his fingertips as they glided over Geordi's skin, the tiny hairs rising up under his touch, the pulse racing and thrumming just beneath the skin, the heat and flush and the slick of his sweat. Data arched his body into the man's, pressing them close and groaning with the need to be even more in contact, to touch ever more deeply. Geordi moaned in response and slid his body down to kiss his way across the android's torso. Data flinched and shivered, gasping as his lover's mouth teased his nipples. Who would have thought that the simple application of pressure and moisture could translate to such a heady sensation? He ran his hands over the short curly thatch of Geordi's hair and felt the engineer chuckle against his stomach, and it tickled and made him tremble and then Geordi was tugging at his waistband. He pushed his hips up to enable the man to slide his pants off, and then Geordi was licking and nuzzling and biting but never quite where he needed it and it was maddening and wonderful and frustrating and glorious.

"Geordi..." He groaned in protest. Geordi looked up at him and smiled.

"Patience." He admonished. "I haven't done this before, so..."

"I am sure it will be wonderful, but please, now, please..." Data was breathing hard, fingers trembling in Geordi's hair, his hips moving spasmodically in his search for relief. Geordi could see that he was already brighter than usual and he revelled in the knowledge that no-one else would ever see him like this, the way that Geordi did, and only he could make him glow like this. He had contemplated taking his visor off to make things easier, but immediately decided that he'd much rather be able to see.

He looked down at his lover's sex, and experimentally ran his tongue up the shaft to the sculpted tip. Data gasped, and his hands left Geordi's head to clench in the sheets. Geordi closed his lips around the golden tip and sucked, and the android gave a strangled squeak of surprise. Geordi looked up and opened his mouth, allowing the shaft to spring free to ask; "Are you okay?"

"Yes, yes, Geordi, yes, please..." Data, who was always so verbose, the walking dictionary/thesaurus, had been reduced to a mumbling wreck already, and he had only just started. Geordi allowed himself a moment of smug congratulation before once more closing his mouth around that pale length. This time he took it deeper into his mouth and ran his tongue around it, the way he remembered Data had. It tasted much like the rest of Data; clean, slightly plastic, faint hints of lubricant, coolant, and the scent of warm electronics. It was Data, it was unique, and the engineer found it incredibly alluring.

* * *

Data had closed his eyes to enjoy the sensations, but found them snapping wide in shock as Geordi drew his cock into his mouth. He arched his back and gripped the bed as his lover's hot wet tongue wrapped around his shaft, and the delicate tactile sensors sent him ripples and sparks of pure pleasure. He fought to keep his hips still for fear that he would harm his lover, but...

"Geordi..." The man looked up at him. "I... I have the option to re-route my fluidic system if you wish, to avoid any discomfort."

Geordi released his cock again and Data gritted his teeth, frustrated at the lack of contact necessitated by his lover's reply.

"Are you saying you can choose whether or not you ejaculate?" He asked. Data was almost gasping, that glow ever brighter, and Geordi loved it, loved watching the effect he was having on his lover with his hands and his mouth.

"Yesss, please, Geordi, do you want...? Please, quickly." He was gritting his teeth, and his back was arching off the bed.

"I assume..." Geordi licked up the length of the shaft again and Data yelped, "... that it's safe for human consumption?"

"It is... completely inert and non-toxic please Geordi _please..._"

"Will you still climax if you don't ejaculate?"

Data hissed between his teeth as Geordi sucked the tip of his prick. "... I see no reason why not..." Geordi grabbed his cock around the base of the shaft and stroked and Data's fingers dug into the bed. This was everything and all he wanted and nothing else mattered.

"I want to taste it. I... I want to know." And with that Geordi put his mouth around Data's cock, one hand around the shaft, moving his mouth and his hand in unison and massaging the pale length. It was thickly veined and sculpted beautifully, and Geordi measured it's thickness with his lips. Data shrieked his name and he sucked and pressed his tongue onto the frenulum, rubbing with the rough wet flesh and making the android howl.

* * *

Data pressed his hips back into the mattress as his spine arched, his head rolling back in his ecstasy. His voice had gone strangely hoarse as his vocal synthesiser failed to translate the signals from his neural net into intelligible sounds, and now all he was capable of was a vaguely mechanical whine behind his gasps for air. His body was on fire with lust, the sensations flowing through his body almost too much to bear. He felt his desire peaking and knew he was going to shut down again as warnings about excessive RAM usage and CPU overheat started howling in his consciousness and he didn't care because he had never felt this good before and even if he never woke up again it would be worth it for _this_ and he shouted Geordi's name in warning but the word didn't make any sense as it left his lips as an inarticulate howl and then he was coming into Geordi's mouth and his whole body was vibrating with it and there was just an empty space where rational thought had been because instead his mind was filled with this extraordinary sunburst of delight pouring over him like hot honey and then nothing

* * *

Geordi gagged and coughed as Data's ejaculate hit the back of his throat. In retrospect he really should have been prepared for that, and he chided himself for spoiling the moment. He looked up and swore. Data was almost too bright to look at, his mouth gaping eyes wide and staring, spine rigidly arched off the mattress, completely inactive. Then his chest gave a mighty heave and he collapsed onto the bed, trembling and gasping. Geordi coughed and snorted the fluid, and cursed himself again for ruining this. It should have been special, damn it, and here he was spitting this stuff all over, and it really didn't taste as bad as he was expecting, certainly not as bad as human semen.

"Data... You okay?" He asked. Data looked down at him and opened and shut his mouth a couple of times.

_I am more than okay, I am wonderful, and you are wonderful, and I love this feeling, and I love the things that you do for me, and I love the things you do __**to**__ me and I love you I __**love**__ you __**Geordi**__ I love __**you**_

"..." No words came out, just an electronic squeak of static. He sighed out a trembling breath, then raised his hands, regarding with astonishment the twin handfuls of foam that he couldn't remember tearing out of the mattress. Geordi chuckled.

"Good thing you let go of my hair!" He slid up the bed to lie down next to the twitching android. Data looked at his human lover, then his brows knit in consternation.

"Do you require me to satisfy you?"

"No need." Geordi looked sheepish. "I, uh, took care of myself." He had felt guilty wiping his hand on the sheets on his way up the bed, but seeing what Data had done to the mattress made him feel better.

Data dropped his head back onto the pillow with a sigh. His breathing was beginning to return to normal. He made to sit up and felt Geordi's hand on his arm.

"Why don't you stay here tonight? I mean, if you want?" The engineer looked almost embarrassed to be asking, and Data quirked his head.

"I would be more than pleased to remain here for the night. I am not on shift until eleven hundred hours tomorrow, which would potentially give us some time in each other's company tomorrow morning also."

Geordi stretched luxuriously and got up to go into the bathroom. "Sure, I'm on at ten, so we can have breakfast and... I dunno, maybe an hour on the Holodeck?"

* * *

When he returned from his ablutions Data had remade the bed, and the sheets looked crisp and inviting, although the android wasn't in them. Puzzled, Geordi looked around until he spotted Data, fully dressed, sitting on the sofa with his knees curled up and a book in his hands.

"Data? Are you coming to bed?" Geordi asked, confused. The android looked up and his pale gold forehead creased.

"You wish for me to share your bed while you sleep? Forgive me, but I had assumed that you would be avoiding such gestures of emotional intimacy, as you were unsure as to the depths of your feelings for me?"

Geordi's heart sank. Yes, of course he was avoiding it, and yes, he didn't want to get too close only to have his heart broken again, or even worse break Data's heart, because the android's emotions were so fragile and new that Geordi was worried it might kill him. And yes, he wasn't sure, still, whether this was just lust, or whether the catch in his throat and the ache in his chest and the way his mind fizzed and his breath caught when he looked at Data was enough for him to call it _don't even think about using that word_

"I... I just thought it might be nice... to be next to each other. And for it to not be about sex."

"I would like that also." Data placed the book back on the shelf and crossed the room to where Geordi was climbing between the sheets.

"Would you like me to remain clothed?" The android asked as Geordi slipped his visor off and placed it on the side table.

"... No." Murmured Geordi as he lay back and rolled onto his side. He listened to the small soft sounds of Data getting undressed, felt the bounce and shift of the bed as the android lay down, and the tug of the sheets being drawn up.

Then the warmth of a firm body pressed against his back and a strong arm encircling his waist.


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter Four; Deprendo

_Deprendo. Verb. 1. Detect. 2. Discover. 3. Embarrass. 4. Reveal._

* * *

Geordi came to slowly, with a luxurious stretch. He wondered idly what time it was, and then realized he didn't care as a knee caressed the back of his thigh.

"Good morning, Geordi."

The engineer smiled to himself and arched his back into his lover, who responded with a hum of approval as his pale arm snaked up the chocolate brown chest of the man pressed against him.

"Good morning indeed. Pretty nice way to wake up." Murmured Geordi as Data began peppering his neck with kisses. He turned to face him and rolled the android onto his back to cover him with his body as Data grabbed the back of his head and pulled him down, his mouth teasing the man's lips with soft promises of things to come.

Data purred with pleased surprise as he felt Geordi's arousal pressed naked against his own, and he reached between their bodies to grasp both of their sexes in one firm white-gold hand. Geordi moaned appreciatively as the android began to massage them both to fullness, his thumb sweeping over the tip of the man's lust to collect the bead of precum and smear it across the sensitive flesh.

"All senior staff to the briefing room in fifteen minutes. Repeat, all senior staff to the briefing room, fifteen minutes."

Geordi groaned aloud with frustration, and Data rested his forehead on the man's dark brow, gazing into his white sightless eyes. His hand slowed, but didn't stop.

"Data, stop, we haven't got time." Geordi pushed gently at the android's arm to try to still that torturous friction.

"Challenge accepted." Data replied.

* * *

Crusher and Troi were already seated in the briefing room when Data arrived, and he seated himself gracefully in his usual chair and greeted them both cordially. Geordi came in a moment later, slightly frazzled looking, with a coffee clutched in one hand. He flopped into his seat with a poorly disguised yawn, and Doctor Crusher quirked an eyebrow at him and smiled.

"Late night last night? I hope you haven't been overindulging again?"

"Uh, no, not... no, just couldn't sleep, got up early, that kind of thing." The engineer ran his fingers through his hair and Troi frowned slightly. She was getting some curious impressions of Geordi's emotional state.

"Morning!" Riker strode into the room and deposited a tray of pastries in the middle of the table. Troi, Geordi and Crusher immediately pounced, and Riker chuckled as he took one himself.

"Yeah, figured I wouldn't be the only one who didn't have time to stop for breakfast." He took a bite of his Danish and looked at Data. "You want to try one?"

"No thank you, sir, I have already eaten."

Geordi coughed violently as a fragment of croissant found its way down his windpipe, and Troi looked at him sharply. Well, _that_ was an interesting reaction she felt from him...

"Good morning." Picard entered the room, business-like and official, a PADD in one hand. "Everything all right, La Forge?"

Geordi gasped and took a swig of coffee. "Yes, sir, just... a bit of... in my throat..." He coughed again, drank again.

Picard seated himself and looked around the table at his officers.

"I apologise for the lack of notice for this meeting, but we've received a distress call, and time is very much of the essence."

Around the table the senior staff glanced at each other, the atmosphere suddenly tense. Picard lifted the PADD to check his notes.

"The planet is Elba II, and the distress call is about a mine. It seems that they have been digging for Bakrinium, and they still extract the ore by hand. They report that one of the shafts has collapsed, and twenty-three miners are trapped."

"With respect, sir," Riker leaned forward, "what does this have to do with us? I don't see why they'd need a starship for a rescue operation like that."

"The call is from the local authorities. Apparently, the mining operation was unauthorized, and they have no extraction procedures in place for this eventuality, as they weren't expecting the miners to continue to work illegally. Somewhat short-sighted of them, in my opinion."

"So they want us to come and beam them all out?" Geordi queried. Picard shook his head.

"The mine is too deep for them to be beamed out without pattern enhancers, we'd have to get to them first."

Riker leaned back. "Any other complications we need to take into account sir?"

"I'm afraid so, number one." Picard sighed. "The atmosphere."

"What about it?" Crusher's brows came together in consternation.

"Elba II has an atmosphere that is fatally toxic to most humanoids. I have a list here of the various poisonous compounds found in the air on the surface, and it makes for particularly unpleasant reading."

Picard passed the PADD to Riker, who began pouring over it for additional details as the captain leant back in his chair and steepled his fingers to continue the briefing.

"We're already on course, estimated arrival in one hour and twenty minutes. Number one, I need you to get a team together and outfitted with appropriate clothing and gear. Geordi, get to work on a shuttle, make sure that it's set up to run in that soup they call air, just in case we need it. Doctor, set up triage with everything you need to neutralise those toxic compounds in case of casualties."

"Sir?" Riker looked up from the PADD, concern creasing his brow. "I'm not sure we can get together enough equipment in the time we have. We're going to need some pretty specialised stuff here."

"We can't afford much of a delay." Put in Troi. "If there are problems with the miner's equipment they'll need us as soon as we can get there."

"There is one person who could go down there." Riker raised his eyebrow and looked across at the android second officer.

Data frowned as he accessed his memory banks, searching for details on the planet. He looked up at Riker.

"You are correct, although the atmosphere is toxic enough that even I may suffer from prolonged exposure, as my bio-functions will eventually become contaminated. However, I would estimate that I could operate for several hours on the surface and still remain within tolerable parameters for toxicity, although I would require thorough decontamination before coming into contact with any biological organisms upon return to the ship."

"Now, hang on a minute." Geordi leaned forward. "What are you suggesting here? A one-man rescue?"

"Not necessarily." Data looked across at the engineer. "My recommendation would be that I act as an advance scout for a more substantial team. I can assess the situation and advise the team as to what equipment they will need. I would also be able to begin the rescue attempt myself, under the correct circumstances."

Picard was frowning deeply. "I won't order you to do this, Data. It seems risky to go down without a full team."

"But," interjected Riker, "we could have a small team ready to go if the conditions are right. They could use the store of gear we already have, and a larger team can be making ready, in case they're needed."

Picard thought deeply for a moment, before looking at his android officer. "Data, are you willing to do this?"

"I am, sir. I believe the proposed plan is a viable way to ensure swift retrieval of those trapped."

Geordi suddenly snapped his fingers. "Hey, this would be the perfect time to test the modified visual acuity transmitter!"

"Sorry, Geordi." Riker held up his hand. "You're not going down, we'll need you up here."

"No, when I say we've modified it, I mean it doesn't fit my visor anymore. It attaches to Data's visual input."

Picard sat up straight. "The transmitter as I remember it was only viable over short distances, and the output was, no offence meant, somewhat confusing to those of us unused to it. Are you saying that you've managed to get it to transmit what Data is seeing?"

"Yes sir." Data answered. "It is not a permanent modification, but it is small enough to be integrated into my neural circuitry. I prefer not to use it for extended periods of time, as the transmitting of the information via subspace is quite a drain on my power reserves."

"If you can fit it before we get there, we could use it to get a first hand view of the mine collapse. That would save us a hell of a lot of time." Riker put in.

Picard nodded thoughtfully. "Very well, do it. Dismissed."

* * *

Half an hour later, Geordi was seated behind the controls of the shuttlecraft he was preparing. He had already made several modifications, and his team were scuttling about the bay with the specialised equipment needed for the hazardous mission.

The shuttlecraft door hummed open and Data entered, his head swinging from side to side as he examined the interior of the vehicle. He stepped towards the seated engineer, and the door murmured closed behind him.

"Your work appears to be progressing well." He remarked. Geordi half-turned in his seat to smile over his shoulder at the android, before turning back to the screen.

"Yeah, it's not as difficult as I thought it might be. These type eleven shuttles are turning out to be pretty tough."

Data moved to stand behind the engineer and placed a hand on his shoulder as he leant over to look at the display. Geordi shrugged the android's hand away.

"Come on, now." He muttered. "Not when we're on duty." Data frowned.

"There was nothing inappropriate about my gesture. Indeed, it was not even particularly intimate. There is no reason to think that anyone would extrapolate..."

"Oh, give it a rest, Data!" Snapped Geordi. "I told you I want to keep this thing private, what's your problem with that?"

"I have no problem maintaining secrecy with regard to our relationship, but you seem to be overreacting to an innocent expression of companionship."

"Look, I know what people are like, they read into little things like that. Before you know it there're rumours all over the place, people talking behind our backs... Just keep your hands to yourself while we're on duty, is that so hard?"

Data scowled. "You are manufacturing a hypothetical worst-case scenario where there is no evidence to suggest that such a negative outcome is likely. I believe that you are projecting your own insecurities onto our fellow..."

"_My_ insecurities?" Geordi swivelled round to stare at the android. "I'm not insecure, there's nothing insecure about wanting to keep my private life and my professional life separate!" He folded his arms defiantly as the android frowned down at him. Data jutted his chin forward, his brows drawn together over his golden eyes.

"I believe that the reason that you are so anxious to keep our liaisons covert is that you are ashamed of your romantic association with me."

Geordi barked a harsh laugh and turned back to the control panel. "I'm done with this conversation, I have work to do."

Data grabbed the engineer's shoulder and spun him round to glare at him, his eyes blazing.

"I am _not_ done with this conversation. I believe that you do not want it to be known that we are engaged in intimacies because you are ashamed. What I have not been able to ascertain is _why_ you are ashamed, but from the various statements that you have made over the period since we commenced our sexual relations, I can hypothesise that it is either because I am male, or because I am an android. Now enlighten me, Geordi, is it one, or both?"

Geordi stared at Data, his mouth hanging open. "Are you seriously suggesting that I don't want to tell people we're sleeping together because _I'm_ prejudiced?" He laughed disbelievingly. "You gotta be kidding! It's everyone else I'm worried about. D'you know how long I've had to put up with people talking behind my back about how I can't keep a woman? Do you have any idea how bad it'll get if they find out about us? 'Oh, he can't get a girl so he's switched to men! And not even a real man! Geordi's so bad at relationships he's dating a robot!'"

A deafening silence fell over them as Geordi stared at Data defiantly. The android's jaw clenched.

"These are your own insecurities, Geordi, not the known opinions of our colleagues. You have created this speculative scenario through your own paranoia, and are using it as an excuse to avoid becoming emotionally vulnerable." His voice was quiet and lethal. Geordi sneered.

"Don't lecture me about emotion, you've got the depth of a puddle. I don't understand why you're so eager for everyone to know anyway. All we do is share a bed! We're not dating, we're not even officially a couple!"

"The only reason that we are not engaged in a deeper romantic relationship is because you keep denying me the chance to express the depth of my feelings! Even when we are alone you seem fixated on maintaining an emotional distance between us." Data snapped. Geordi shook his head and threw his hands in the air.

"You can't talk about the 'depth of your feelings'! You have no idea how deep your feelings are, you're not emotionally developed enough to know _what_ you're feeling!"

"I know enough about myself and my own emotions to know that I want to call what I feel for you love!" Data's hands were clenched into fists by his sides. Geordi threw his head back with a derisive snort.

"You don't know the first thing about love!" He retorted. Data's jaw worked rhythmically as he leant down to put himself face to face with the engineer.

"I know that you are the first thing I think about in the morning, and the last thing I think about before I engage my dream program. I know that you distract me from my duties in a way that nothing and nobody has ever been able to in the past. I know that if the choice were mine I would stand in the middle of the lounge bar and shout my love for you to the entire crew, because you made me so happy, Geordi, in ways that I had never even imagined were possible. But..." He took a deep breath and straightened up. "If you are incapable of returning those affections in any meaningful way, then I think perhaps it would be better for both of us if we cease to be intimate. I have realised that it is no longer enough for me to share your bed. I want to share your life. If my desires are incompatible with your own, then I will respect that, but I cannot continue to engage in sexual contact with you."

"Wait... you're breaking up with me? Right now?" Geordi almost laughed, but the expression on Data's face left no room for doubt, the android was totally serious.

"Geordi, I cannot break up with you." The android turned to leave and the shuttle door opened. He looked back over his shoulder at the engineer.

"There is nothing substantial enough between us to break."


	9. Chapter 9

Clarent; The Blade of Peace, Stolen and Corrupted

Chapter One; Insidia

_Insidia. Noun. . 2. Plot. 3. Trap._

* * *

"Data to Enterprise; I am safely on the surface. Are you receiving?"

"Loud and clear, Commander." Riker's voice replied through the com. "Can you try activating the visual acuity transmitter? I want to check we're getting the signal up here."

"Acknowledged." Data twitched his head to one side.

* * *

On the bridge of the _Enterprise_, in orbit around Elba II, the viewscreen image of the surface was replaced by an extraordinary blur of shifting colours and static, sharp shadows and hard edges melting and blurring garishly.

"This image doesn't make any sense." Riker murmured.

"My apologies, sir." Data's disembodied voice replied. "I will now filter out the bandwidths outside of the normal human visual spectrum."

Moment by moment the image cleared as competing signals were stripped away, until the viewscreen showed the surface of the planet. The rocks were a dull brown-grey, mining equipment and tools lay here and there, and a large transport of some kind was visible standing ready at the foot of a cliff. In front of the vehicle a huge hole had been bored into the rock.

"According to the message that should be the entrance to the collapsed mine, if the coordinates they've given are correct." Picard's mellow voice sounding through the com link was reedy in the thin choking atmosphere.

"I will commence my search. I will endeavour to avoid moving my eyes too quickly, as I believe the rapidly changing image may be disorienting to watch."

"Very thoughtful of you, Data."

* * *

The android made his way cautiously towards the entrance to the mine, tricorder scanning ahead for any disturbances that may indicate instability or potential collapse. He placed his feet surely, nimble as a dancer over the rough terrain as he entered the mine.

"Data, we're losing visual, it's getting too dark." Riker sounded anxious.

"One moment, sir. Attempting to compensate." Data added infrared back into the transmission, overlaying it onto the visible spectrum images. "Has that improved the image?"

"It's still pretty dark but yes, we've got more detail."

"Would you like me to turn on the torch?"

"If you can see then you go ahead. Save the torch for when we really need to see."

"Understood sir."

* * *

Data moved as swiftly as he dared through the darkened tunnels, moving steadily deeper into the planet's crust. As much as he hated to admit it, the atmosphere was unnerving. He could hear nothing save the noises he was making himself, and the memory of being trapped and in pain surfaced. He felt a stab of empathy for the miners and picked up his pace.

Rounding a corner bought him to a t-section. He looked both ways as far as he could.

"Sir, I am at an intersection. Can the scanners penetrate this far?"

"That's a negative. We've no information on the internal layout of the mine system."

Data flicked the torch on, and swept it along both corridors. There was a muffled curse over the com.

"Data? In future, could you warn us when you're turning the torch on?" Riker's voice was strained.

"Ah. My apologies sir. I forgot that human eyes take time to..."

"Never mind, Commander." That was the captain again. "Carry on with your search."

"Yes sir." Murmured the android. He swept the beam of light over the floor, then set off decisively down one branch of the junction.

"Out of curiosity..." The captain's voice asked, "How did you come to the conclusion that this was the correct way to go?"

"As yet, I am still unsure if I _am_ correct." Data replied, switching the torch off again to preserve the power cells. "However, this side of the junction slopes steadily downwards, and is heavily marked with the impression of many footprints, the drag-marks of equipment, and various other signs of being used regularly and recently."

"Good work, Holmes." Riker again. Data grinned at the quip as his memory banks supplied him with the images of many happy hours on the hollodeck. The smile slipped from his face as he wondered whether Geordi would wish to be his Watson now, after the harsh words exchanged before the mission. The aching empty sense of loss was much like grief, and he remembered Geordi's worry that they would not be able to reclaim their old comradeship if their romantic relationship failed. Data resolved not to allow their friendship to break down irrevocably; he couldn't bear to think that he may never share that easy camaraderie again with the man who meant so much to him.

Abruptly, the tunnel came to an end, with a land-slide of rubble and stone.

"I have found the cave-in." Reported Data. "I will turn on the torch now."

The beam illuminated the debris, totally blocking the tunnel. Data moved the torch over the wreckage of the mine, and frowned to himself as he listened.

"Sir? I can hear no signs of movement or life on the other side of the blockage."

"That's strange..." Picard mused. His voice was distorted by the distance, the thick rock layer muffling the signal. "I would have thought that they would be trying to escape. Surely they have mining equipment on the other side of the blockage."

"There is something else." Data looked up at the roof of the cave. "I have reason to believe that this was a deliberate act."

"What makes you say that?" Riker queried. Data pointed, his hand glowing white in the sparse light.

"There are signs that holes were drilled in the roof of the tunnel, and the edges are sharp, suggesting that this work is recent." He reached up and dragged his finger through one of the depressions he had pointed out, and touched the dusty deposit to the tip of his tongue for chemical analysis.

"They packed the holes with explosives." He mused. "The resultant explosion was the cause of the collapse."

"Why would they want to trap their own people?" Picard sounded angry. "Who would do such a thing?"

"I am not entirely sure there _is_ anyone trapped, sir." Data strained his hearing. "I can detect no signs... wait."

His head swung round, looking back down the way he had come.

"I have reason to believe that there is someone else here."

"We can't see anything, Data." Came Riker's anxious reply. Data lifted the torch and shone it down the tunnel.

"I can hear footsteps, and a respirator. A heartbeat. Humanoid."

* * *

Data stepped back, putting his back up against the cave-in, and drew his phaser. He looked down to make sure it was set to stun, then raised his head again to strain his eyes into the darkness.

Slowly, a figure resolved itself from the shadows. In a bulky hazmat suit, heavy helmet and respirator, it was impossible to tell what sex, race or species it might belong to. But it was coming towards him.

Data felt an irrational chill of fear. There was no reason to be frightened, this was probably the miner who had raised the alarm, coming to check on the situation... but if he was right, then the cave-in was deliberate, and there were no miners trapped beyond the rubble. So what was this person doing down here?

"Stop there! Come no closer! Identify yourself!" Data raised the phaser at the advancing figure. The thing in the suit continued to advance, and to Data's delicate audio sensors the sound of the respirator thundered around the narrow tunnel.

"Identify yourself! Who are you?" Data realised that his breathing had sped up, his internal systems working hard in the thin, foul atmosphere. His pulse was racing as his systems primed his fight-or-flight responses, and his pupils widened to make the most of the meagre light in an attempt to prepare him for action. He was suddenly aware of the immense weight of stone above him, conscious of the vast distance between him and the safety of the _Enterprise._ He was almost certain that whatever was inside that hazmat suit would not be as fast, strong, or intelligent as he. So why did he feel so afraid?

"Stop or I will be forced to shoot!" He shouted, hoping that his voice sounded commanding. It seemed to have the desired effect, as the figure ceased its advance. It raised both arms in the air in the universally recognised symbol of surrender, but Data saw the shimmer of metal in the torch light, something clutched in the suited person's hand.

"Whatever you are holding, drop it!" Data gestured with his phaser. The figure shrugged its shoulders exaggeratedly, and tossed the object onto the floor between them. Data's eyes followed the gleam of the metal as it tumbled onto the rough stone, and there was a burst of extraordinarily pure white light. He could vaguely hear the cursing through his combadge as Picard and Riker were blinded, but Data's attention was fixed on the phaser tumbling from his hand and the floor rushing up to meet his face.

* * *

On the bridge, far above the planet's surface, the cursing had stopped as everyone's eyes recovered. Riker was still scrubbing the heels of his hands into his eyes when he felt Picard clutch his arm. He looked up blearily at the viewscreen to see the masked and shrouded figure, larger than life, looming into view as the immobile Data was rolled onto his back. An arm reached down, and when it pulled back it was clutching Data's combadge. The figure left their field of vision, and there was the sound of a phaser shot.

"Signal lost, combadge destroyed." Reported the Lieutenant manning the com link.

"Will, get down there _now._" Picard growled. Riker nodded once and belted to the turbolift, shouting through his com for his away team to stand ready.

Picard's hard gaze was fixed to the feed on the screen as the figure reappeared, looming over the prone android. It reached down and partially raised the android off the floor to reach behind his back, and the screen went black.

"We've lost visual, sir." The Lieutenant shook his head.

"My God." Picard felt a chill race through him. Whoever was in that suit knew about Data's deactivation switch.

"It was a trap." He murmured to himself, before giving himself a shake.

"I want a full sensor sweep of the planet. Whoever they are, they must have a ship somewhere. It could be in orbit, or on one of the moons. Find it, now!"


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter Two; Coherceo

_Coherceo. Verb. 1. Confine. 2. Limit. 3. Preserve. 4. Punish. 5. Restrain/repress._

* * *

When Data was reactivated, he was struck with the impression that he had been here before. Lying on his back he snapped his head swiftly from side to side, scanning the room as quickly as he could. There were paintings hanging along the white walls, a large red couch shaped into a spiral in the middle of the room, pedestals holding sculptures and artifacts. He knew this place.

"Familiar, isn't it?"

"Kivas Fajo." Data leapt to his feet to turn and face his kidnapper.

Or at least, that was what he had intended to do. Instead his feet scrabbled uselessly against the floor as his legs spasmed and twitched, and his arms failed to lift him more than an inch or so before trembling and collapsing under his weight.

"What have you done to me?" He demanded, fear adding an edge to his voice. He began a diagnostic as Kivas Fajo strolled over to look down on him. Dressed in luscious deep-blue velvet, the Zibalian's fingers were bejewelled, his hair oiled and curled, tucked under a matching velvet cap. The tattoo on his face shifted as he smiled down on the android.

"It took me such a long time to get everything back. Oh, you have no _idea_ how much I had to spend to get my possessions returned here. Of course, some things couldn't be replaced, like poor dear Varria..."

"You killed her." The diagnostic came back clear, all systems functioning as normal. So why was he unable to do more than twitch?

"No, _you_ killed her, Data." The Zibalian's lip curled. "You filled her head with stupid ideas, her blood is on _your_ hands. She was perfectly happy until you came along."

"She was being held captive by you."

Fajo barked a laugh. "She was free to go whenever she wanted to! But she wanted to stay, she _chose_ to stay, because she knew she'd be better off with me!" He looked down at the prone android and shook his head sadly. "You would have been better off too, you know, if you had just behaved. So wilful, so stubborn."

The Zibalian knelt down to push his face close to Data's, staring into his golden eyes.

"You ruined me." Fajo whispered. "You took away everything I had. So now, I am going to ruin you."

Fajo stood and took a turn around the room, seemingly admiring his possessions, as Data continued to struggle. It was as if the gravity was too high, like an invisible weight on him.

"Why am I unable to stand?" He asked, and this time he heard the tremble in his voice. Fajo had heard it too, judging by the lop-sided smile he turned on Data.

"Are you frightened? It's wonderful. I thought you were incredible when I had you before, but now? Oh, just wonderful. Look at you!" Fajo gestured to the trembling android. "Fantastic. The fear in your eyes, it's just beautiful. You know, I'd love to shake your creator by the hand, he really was a genius."

"Tell me why I cannot move!"

"Ha! Panic! It's in the voice! Oh, you're too much, it's just glorious!" Fajo put a hand over his mouth in wonder, his dark eyes gleaming. "I am going to have so much fun."

The Zibalian turned and all but skipped in pleasure as he made his way to the couch. Data craned his neck to watch as Fajo picked up a small device. He held it up, grinning.

"Do you know what this is?" Data scowled at him, and Fajo giggled. "Me neither. No idea, not a clue! I'm an art collector, not a scientist." He waved the object vaguely. "It's something to do with stopping the signals from your positronic brain from reaching your motor... Oh, something, something. You know, I don't care _how_ it works, just that it does. And it does! You're helpless!"

"The Enterprise..."

"They have no idea where you are. Your combadge is gone, we're heavily shielded and cloaked, yadda yadda yadda." Fajo turned to place the device onto a spare pedestal, and Data took the opportunity of his momentary distraction to switch on the visual acuity transmitter. Hopefully, wherever they were, the scanners of the _Enterprise _would pick up the signal.

"How have you come to own such a specialised piece of equipment?" Data queried. Fajo was picking up something else from the couch, a long stick-like object. He caressed it thoughtfully before turning back to the android.

"Oh, I have a _lot_ of new toys to play with. This is one of them." He took hold of the stick in both hands and pulled gently, and Data realised that it was a case, or more accurately a sheath. Fajo's right hand held the hilt as his left pulled the cover away lovingly, revealing an extraordinarily thin bladelike strand, with a thickness of less than a millimetre, a length of forty centimetres, so fine it was almost transparent. He waved it a little, testing it, and the blade bent and swayed with his movements.

"This, my dear android, is a monofilament crop." The Zibalian's eyes gleamed as he regarded the shining whip. "It's covered with tiny, almost microscopic barbs. It's been specially made, there's only one in the whole universe, and it's for you." He bared his teeth in a grin. "Or, more accurately, for me to use _on_ you."

"You will not harm me, I am too valuable to you." Data tried to put certainty into his voice, but the sight of the short, flexible whip was intimidating. Tiny barbs... it would be like having his sensors flayed out of his skin. Fajo laughed, a full throaty belly-laugh.

"Too _valuable?_" He bent down once again to the android. "You mean _nothing_ to me, nothing. You took away everything I had. I _hate_ you. I haven't captured you so that I can keep you, oh no, I'm just the middleman. My client is a most intelligent man, he's the one who's given me all these wonderful gadgets, and he's looking forward to having you delivered to him. On a platter, or in a quivering heap, whichever you decide."

The Zibalian stood and walked around the prone android. "If you behave, I won't have to hurt you at all. I'm not asking much, just..." He was interrupted by the chime of the communicator in the corner of the room. He gritted his teeth. "Really? I'm having a _moment_ here! Honestly, sometimes the universe has terrible timing!" He stalked over and thumped the panel. "Yes, what?"

Data dropped his head back to the floor. Whatever this 'new toy' of Fajo's was, it was making it incredibly hard for him to even keep his head raised, especially combined with the power drain from the visual acuity transmission. He hoped desperately that the signal was being received and tracked.

"Get down here, now! Bring the scanner!" Fajo barked into the communicator, and strode back over to look down thunderously on the helpless android.

"If he's right, you are in a lot of trouble, my friend. A _lot_ of trouble." Fajo growled.

"If who is right about what?" Asked Data. Fajo scowled, and the doors hissed open. One of Fajo's crewmen scampered in, a scanner held out before him.

"Look sir, I was right! It's coming from him!"

"You said he was searched!" Fajo snapped and the man cowered.

"He was, sir, I swear it! He can't possibly have anything on him..."

Fajo whirled around and stalked to the disabling device, sat on its pedestal. He punched a pattern onto the small screen, then turned back to the android.

"Get up." He snarled.

Data tentatively tried to sit. To his surprise he was able to raise himself up, although he still felt as though he had somehow become denser, every movement was an extraordinary drain. He looked at Fajo, and then slowly and deliberately lay back down.

Fajo breathed out sharply through his nose. "Listen, android, here's how things are going to work for you. I ask you to do something, and you do it. If you fail to do it when I ask you the first time, I'll assume that you misunderstood, and I will repeat myself. I _will not_ repeat myself a third time, do you understand? Now. Get. Up."

Data remained on his back, staring up at the ceiling. He was trying to remain in control of his breathing, trying to stay calm.

The monofilament crop flicked out, and a line of searing pain flashed across Data's chest. He gasped with the shock of it, the sensation of a thousand tiny hooks tearing into his skin, activating his damage control sensors and sending warnings shrilling through his consciousness. The whip struck again, back the other way, cutting a Saint Andrew's cross into his bioplast and spattering his shredded uniform with the golden yellow liquid that raced through his circulatory system. His eyes opened wide and he clenched his teeth. The third stripe caught one of his nipples, and he shrieked with the red-hot lick of stinging heat that seared through the sensitive area.

"Oh, he told me you could feel pain now, but this is _exquisite_!" Purred Fajo.

Data's chest heaved as he struggled to stay calm. If he stayed down, Fajo would continue to hurt him. He was only being asked to stand. Was that worth all this pain? Perhaps there would be a time later when he would have to resist and stand his ground. For now, better to acquiesce and stave off further damage. If the chance came to attempt an escape, he would need his strength, would need to be whole.

He put his hands on the floor and pushed himself up. It was hard, much more difficult than he had anticipated, but finally he gained his feet. He drew himself slowly to his full height and glared down at Fajo. The Zibalian met his yellow eyes unflinchingly.

"Strip."

"No."

The crop lashed out, and Data sucked a breath between clenched teeth as the sensors across his stomach flashed signals through him. Another cut, and another, until his uniform jacket was ragged shreds across his body. He could hear the thumping of his circulatory system, priming his hydraulics for either fight or flight, but he was too weak to fight, and there was nowhere to run. He trembled where he stood as shock and panic tore through his neural net, the pain signals hot flashes of fire.

"Don't answer back. You'll speak only when answering a direct question. Strip."

There must be another option. Surely there was a choice other than pain or humiliation? Try as he might, Data couldn't think of a third course of action. The effort of blasting out a subspace transmission and fighting against the weakening effects of whatever that insidious device was were combining to disastrous effect. He felt under-powered, his mind was cluttered with warnings, his judgement impaired by shock and pain and fear.

Slowly, he reached up and unfastened the remnants of his jacket.

Kivas Fajo watched with eager eyes as the android shed his ruined uniform jacket and the undershirt beneath, soaked with hydraulic fluid. Data kicked away his boots and slid his trousers down until he stood before the Zibalian in just his socks and boxer briefs. Fajo's gaze raked over his body with such possessive hunger that Data almost felt it as a physical sensation.

"And the rest."

"No."

Fajo sighed, not with irritation, but seemingly with disappointment. He swished the crop as he moved behind the android, and then delivered two swift stinging cuts to Data's back, marring the smooth pale expanse with an x of oozing yellow. The android flinched and arched his back, as if he could escape the hurt already inflicted upon him.

"Now, Data. I won't ask again."

Data's jaw worked for a moment, before he bent and slid his underwear down and off his feet, slipping his socks off in passing. He was breathing hard, his consciousness overwhelmed with multiple damage control warnings, and now his modesty subroutine kicked into life, urging him to cover his naked body in front of these strangers, these hostiles. He disabled the subroutine and stood as straight as he could. He tried to remind himself that, even without his uniform, he was still a Starfleet officer. He swore he could feel the Zibalian running his eyes over his naked form.

"We've detected a subspace transmission. Where's the transmitter?"

"I do not have such a device." It wasn't a lie. Not as such. Fajo pursed his lips as he walked around to look the android in the eyes.

"Well, the signal's coming from you. It's either on you, or in you. Now, we can do this the easy way; you can shut it off, and I'll forget this silly little transgression. Or, you can continue to be stubborn, and then I'll have to tear you apart looking for the transceiver. I don't want to, you understand, but my client, well, he's happy to have you in pieces if necessary. I'm going to give you 'till the count of five to decide." Fajo swished the crop again, spattering the carpet with golden droplets. "One."

This was intolerable. Never, in all his life, had anyone deliberately caused him pain. Data was totally at a loss. He knew about torture on an intellectual level, knew that some of his friends had been subjected to brutalization in their past, but never had he thought that it may happen to him.

"Two."

If he turned off the transmission, the _Enterprise_ would have no way to track the vessel, they wouldn't be able to find him. He would have to try and escape on his own. He remembered the multiple clever ways that Fajo had held him previously and he felt despair clutch at him. Fajo was smarter now, and even worse, he placed no value on Data remaining whole, or even functional.

"Three."

He had to keep manually shutting down his warning systems. Every time he moved, the cuts would shift and set off the howling of the damage control subroutine, sending flashes of pain lancing through him. His modesty subroutine kept activating, and that required a conscious effort to dispel also. He was finding it increasingly difficult to string together coherent thought through the clamour.

"Four."

He twitched his head, shutting off the transmission. The man with the scanner nodded to Fajo.

"That's it, it's stopped."

"Good." Purred Fajo. "Very good, Data." He turned away from the trembling android. "You may leave. Keep monitoring, let me know if he tries it again." He snapped at the man, who was only too glad to flee. The doors slid shut behind him, and Fajo turned once more to devouring the android's exposed white-gold skin with his eyes.

"You are the most fascinating creature, you know that?" Fajo murmured. He reached out and ran his fingertips across the sculpted pectoral muscles, smearing the shimmering fluid leaking from the cuts. "You cannot begin to imagine how... alluring you are. I have spent my whole _life_ collecting things of rare beauty, but you? Oh, like a moving, feeling, perfect doll." He grabbed the android's jaw. Data tried to jerk his head free and found himself unable to break the Zibalian's grip. Fajo smiled his lopsided smile.

"I love my new toys." He sighed.


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter Three; Potior

_Potior. Verb. 1. Control. 2. Possess. 3. Reign over. 4. Seize. 5. Win Sexually._

* * *

"Now, open your mouth."

Data closed his eyes and did as he was told. The ache and throb of the vicious cuts convinced him that Fajo was sincere in his declaration; he cared nothing for Data, and would do whatever he wanted to him. Data rationalised that his best chance was to submit for now and bide his time.

He felt two of Fajo's stubby fingers slide over his tongue, rasping backwards and forwards. He analysed the chemical components of the secretions on the Zibalian's skin to try and distract himself from the squirming digits probing his palate, feeling his teeth. He breathed through his nose and tried to quell the rising disgust.

"Suck."

Data's lips closed over the fingers and he used his tongue to push the digits to the roof of his mouth before pulling them firmly towards his throat. He heard the Zibalian sigh, and felt the hand tremble.

"Good, that's enough." Data opened his mouth and let Fajo withdraw his fingers. He had thought momentarily about biting, wondered whether he was still quick enough and strong enough to destroy those probing fingers, but he dismissed the idea as impractical. Fajo would probably deactivate him, but potentially not before brutalizing him again, and he had to stay active if he was to stand any chance of escaping.

"That... that was very erotic." Murmured Fajo. Data opened his eyes to look down his nose at the Zibalian, who was examining the shining film of synthetic saliva coating his fingers. He looked at the android and reached up to slowly smear the viscous fluid over Data's face, tracing his golden lips with glistening moistness. Fajo shivered with delight as Data closed his eyes again and turned his head to the side to try and evade those slick fingers.

"Marvellous." Breathed the Zibalian, his pupils dilated. He stepped in to press himself chest to chest with the android, noting how the golden eyes evaded his, and the shimmering imitation skin trembled. Fajo ran his fingertips down the android's sides, and Data drew a sharp breath through his teeth at the shock of such an intimate gesture.

"You've been touched like this before, yes?" Murmured Fajo, tracing the white-gold abdominal muscles and watching the play of the micro-hydraulics underneath as Data shivered.

"Yes."

"Hmm..." Fajo purred, and abruptly dropped his hands to stride away and seat himself on the couch, one leg atop the crimson cushions. Data could see that the Zibalian was aroused, and the sight of Fajo's burgeoning erection bulging through his clothes made his breathing quicken in panic.

"Tell me..." Fajo shifted his other leg up on the couch. "Have you ever been with a man before?"

"... Yes."

Fajo giggled and drummed his feet on the cushions. "Delightful! What have you done?"

"I do not understand."

"What sex acts? How many, which ones?" Fajo's eyes were bright and wide, and he let one hand drift down to caress himself. Data tried to quell his rising dread and bit back the shame that was welling up.

"Kissing, deep kissing, frottage, mutual masturbation, and fellatio."

Fajo purred and stretched with pleasure. "Wonderful. I assume you're good at it. I mean, you're programmed, right? So, why no penetrative intercourse?" The Zibalian's tongue flicked out as he licked his lips. Data shivered.

"We... Our relationship has yet to..." His yellow eyes flicked from side to side as he searched for the right words. Fajo gasped and sat up.

"Oh! A _relationship!_" His lopsided mouth widened into a grin. "That's... that's just adorable! Who is it?"

Data frowned. "You do not know the staff of the Enterprise..."

"Oh but I do, Data. I haven't been idle, I've been doing my research! I know everyone you know. Oh! I know!" He clapped his hands onto his knees. "Twenty questions!"

Data frowned as he tried to process the abrupt shift in mood of his captor. "I do not understand."

"You don't know twenty questions? It's a game, it'll be fun!" Fajo clasped his hands close to his chest. "I want to know everything about you Data, _everything!_ But we can start with twenty questions, and I'm going to try and work out who on that big ugly ship you're fucking. You can only answer with yes, or no, understand?"

"...Yes." A game. He was standing naked in this madman's gallery, in an unknown vessel, going who knows where, and Fajo wanted to play a game. Data swatted down his modesty subroutine again.

"Wonderful!" Fajo leaned back to rest against the spiral pillar rising out of the couch, and let his hand drift once more over his crotch. "So... he's male?"

"Yes."

"Is he human?"

"... Yes."

Fajo giggled again. "Is he... older than you?"

"Yes." At least from the point he remembered being activated.

"Oooh, interesting. Does he outrank you?"

"No."

"Do you outrank him?"

"No."

"Aww, that's no fun! I was hoping for some power play, some interesting dynamics! So, is he the one who you've been having all this naughty fun with?"

"... Yes." Data felt his breath hitch. Why was he asking all these questions? What would it matter if he knew? And why did Data desperately want to keep Geordi's identity from him? Fajo's hand was inside his pants now; Data could see the movements of his hand under the fabric as the Zibalian stimulated himself.

"But you haven't penetrated him?"

"... No."

"And..." Fajo's hand slowed, and Data watched the Zibalian grit his teeth. Fajo breathed deeply for a moment before continuing his self-ministrations. "And he hasn't penetrated you?"

"No."

Fajo locked eyes with the android. "Do you want to be penetrated?"

"Not by you."

Fajo was on his feet in an instant. He snatched up something from the couch and advanced on the android with astonishing speed. It was a different 'toy' he was brandishing this time, nothing more than a metal bar with a padded grip, but Data discovered just how effective a blunt instrument could be as Fajo swung the rod and bought it slamming into the android's stomach. Data doubled over instinctively as the blunt object sent a shock of agony through his sensors. Fajo crashed the bar into the backs of Data's knees, and the weakened android lost his balance and slammed to the floor. He barely had time to raise his arm over his face before Fajo was raining blows down on him, his duranium bones withstanding the onslaught, but his bioplast soaking up the punishment as his delicate sensors screamed pain into his mind, and he cowered on the floor as his neural net flooded with terror.

"Do. As. You're. Told. Data!" Bellowed Fajo, punctuating each word with a smash of the steel rod on the android's back, shoulders or legs. "Play. The. Game!"

He stepped back, breathing hard. The naked android was curled tightly into a ball, one arm tucked protectively over his face. Fajo stalked back to the couch and threw the rod down before slumping back into the cushions to scowl at Data.

"Get up!" He snapped, petulant.

Data pushed himself up onto his hands and knees. He had promised himself that he wouldn't cry out while Fajo was beating him, but as he raised himself off the floor he realised he was making a high-pitched keening noise. He swallowed hard and tried to stop the sound, but it seemed to be a signal that was bypassing conscious thought and going straight to his vocal synthesiser. His body was trembling from the assault, hundreds of micro-hydraulic rams had ruptured under his skin and his synthetic muscles spasmed, attempting to follow the signals that were already choked and stunted by the inhibiting device. His mind was full of the howl and wail of warnings; Damage, proximity to danger, power drain, modesty, morals, ethics... And over it all, a haze of pain. Every cut, every broken hydraulic line, every damaged sensor cluster sang its own song of agony into his neural net, until he felt he might go mad from it.

"I cannot." He gasped. His chest heaved, his internal workings running hot, attempting to work through the confused muddle of conflicting processes.

"Get. Up!" Fajo barked.

Data pushed himself up, trembling with effort, his body barely under his own control. He stood, head down and shoulders stooped, panting with effort. He could see the place on his stomach where Fajo had struck him, where his circulatory system had ruptured and yellow fluid was pooling under his skin, an unsightly yellow spreading across his abdominals.

"Fajo, please... I require repair." He croaked. He raised his head to look at the Zibalian, who was scowling back at him under dark brows.

"What will you give me in return?" Fajo's lip curled.

Data closed his eyes.

"Obedience."

"If I give you the means to repair your damage, will you swear to do all that you're asked to do?"

"Yes."

"Come here."

On shaking legs, the android crossed to where Fajo sat. The Zibalian looked up at him, dark eyes glittering.

"Kneel."

Data almost fell, his knees thumping into the carpet. He raised his head to look at Fajo, pleading with his eyes. Fajo smiled.

"Prove to me that you're going to behave, and we'll get you all fixed up, good as new."

"Fix me, please. The pain is too much."

"First, proof." Fajo reached into his waistband and drew out his cock. He stroked it slowly, bringing it to fullness. He beckoned to the android and Data took over, wrapping his pale hand around the shaft. Fajo hissed in pleasure and leaned back, watching through half closed eyes.

"Suck it." He growled. Data closed his eyes and lowered his head to take the Zibalian's sex into his mouth. It tasted faintly metallic, like blood, and Data tried to concentrate his mind on a thorough chemical analysis as he felt Fajo's hands on the back of his head.

Fajo pushed the android's face into his crotch, grinding himself into Data's mouth. Data swallowed the Zibalian's cock down into his throat and Fajo gasped, his fists gripping the shining dark hair.

Data wished that he could stop recording, knew that he would now have indelibly imprinted in his memory banks every detail of this sordid encounter, the precise dimensions of the Zibalian's genitals, the chemical analysis of his smell and taste, the viscosity of his precum. Every time he recalled this instance he would be able to remember precisely how much force the tip of Kivas Fajo's cock was hitting the back of his throat with, the speed of his thrusts, and the pitch and volume of his grunting moans as Data pleasured him. Overwhelmed with pain and fear, his only thought was to do what he had to in order to end this as quickly as he could. He reached up and caressed Fajo's testicles with his thumb, cupping the balls in his palm and stroking the delicate skin with his nails. He felt Fajo's cock throb in his mouth and shuddered as a sickening wave of revulsion rolled over him. He shook the feeling off and bore down on the shaft, his tongue wrapping and caressing.

"Look at me." Fajo gasped. Data opened his eyes and looked up at the Zibalian, and the pain and fear in those shining golden orbs nearly sent Fajo over the edge. He was breathing hard now, struggling to maintain control as this magnificent machine went to work. The strong wet tongue and soft lips, the tease with the teeth, the hot depths of that constricting throat...

"Do you like this, Data?" He groaned. The android closed his eyes again, and two golden tears tracked down his cheeks.

Fajo arched back against the cushions and thrust himself into the android's throat, groaning as his orgasm ripped through him and his cock jerked in that beautiful mouth. He pressed himself into that warm wetness, gasping with the dizzying beauty of that tearstained face regarding him as he emptied his essence into it. Worth the wait, yes, worth all the frustration and trouble and Latinum to have this golden being knelt in supplication before him, and this exquisite pleasure rippling through his body in waves. He groaned again, another hot jet of cum spurting into the machine's gullet, and it swallowed it gloriously, tongue and throat squeezing his prick and sucking him dry.

He held himself there as his ecstasy waned and ebbed away, his fingers tangled in dark brown hair and his slowly softening prick in that lovely, lovely mouth. He relaxed his back, releasing the muscles gently, unwilling to let this moment end.

"Good... so good." Fajo murmured, unknotting his hands from the android's hair. Data opened his mouth and allowed the Zibalian's flaccid sex to fall free.

"Yes, very good." Fajo was breathing deeply, regaining control slowly. He reached out and smoothed Data's hair back into place, bringing his hand down to brush away the remnants of the android's tears of shame. Data's face was impassive, but Fajo could sense the turmoil, and he revelled in it. To have such a powerful being, to bring it to heel so completely... It was such a heady sensation, he was almost giddy with it.

"Fajo... please fix me." The android murmured. Fajo smiled and stretched luxuriously.

"Of course, my pretty one, of course."


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter Four; Cillo

_Cillo. Noun. 1. Catamite. 2. One who practices unnatural lust, sodomite._

* * *

True to his word Fajo replicated the tools Data needed to self-repair, at least the worst of the damage. The Zibalian watched the android carefully and assisted in knitting the cuts on his back, cooing and pawing over the newly smooth skin. When the repairs were complete he removed the tools and destroyed them, then ordered the android to a corner of the gallery and bid him lie down. Fajo changed the settings on the movement inhibitor to ensure that the android was immobile, and then left him for the night with a cheery wave.

Lying on his back, battling panic and anguish, Data tried to maintain airflow through his cooling units. With the device preventing signals from reaching his hydraulics and servos he was unable to support himself and, like a beached dolphin, he was slowly suffocating under his own weight. He forced a shutdown of his digestive process, unwilling to absorb the emissions he had been compelled to ingest. He had found a strange pleasure in taking Geordi's essence into himself, breaking it down and using it, making it a part of him. The thought of doing the same with anything of his captors' filled him with disgust. He resolved to store the stuff until he could expel it somewhere, rid himself of the hateful evidence of his shame.

He looked across the room to the pedestal holding the device preventing him from moving. If he could get to that pillar, change the settings... But he was no more capable of getting to the other side of the gallery than he was of holding back the tears of frustration, anger and humiliation that ran unchecked into his hair.

* * *

He sought solace in dreams, nothing else to do as he lay helpless and despairing. In his dreams at least he could imagine he was elsewhere for a time.

He dreamed of Divala Lake, the suffocating pressure of water. He reached up, and Geordi reached down, and somehow the dark-skinned man took a hold of his hands and pulled him up. They were no longer at the lake, they were on the Amargosa Observatory, and Soran had Geordi and Data was too terrified to move, frozen in place. But it was alright because, somehow, Soran was gone and it was just him and Geordi, and the man's hand was brushing the tears from his cheeks.

"Geordi." Data murmured, and the man smiled and pressed their lips together, but somehow his lips were wrong, the pressure and dimensions were not the same as those on file, the chemical composition showed significant deviation and it was Kivas Fajo, not Geordi, and his hands were on Data's body, touching and fondling.

* * *

Data's eyes snapped open. He was too warm. His chest moved in short jerks as the stunted signal made its way to his servos. He had had disturbing dreams in the past, but they had always been abstract. This was too personal, too close to reality. No more dreams, then.

He checked his internal chronometer and wondered how long Zibalians slept for.

* * *

It was nine hours, eighteen minutes and forty-three point two-nine seconds later that he heard the door open. Two people entered the room, both humanoids. One was definitely Kivas Fajo, and Data momentarily entertained the hope that the other person may be here to save him. But, upon further analysis, the heavy footfalls were all too familiar.

"There he is! I hope you'll find him a little more agreeable than the last time you saw him!" Fajo had crossed the room, was going to the device on the pillar. Data felt the constraint on his neural activity lift, and he gasped a huge gulp of cool air into his internal cavity.

"Come on, don't be rude, get up and say hello!" Fajo purred. Data heaved himself up to his feet, titanium ribs heaving as he tried to cool his processors.

"My my, he really _is_ an android! You know I thought for sure you were playing a naughty prank on me, Kivas!" Palor Toff wagged his finger accusingly at the Zibalian, who chuckled.

"Ah, yes, but that was before dear Data learned how to behave politely. I said, 'say hello', Data."

"Hello, Palor Toff." Data murmured. His internal temperature was gradually receding to a more normal level. He was suddenly very conscious that he was naked before this alien, and he shut down his modesty subroutine again, clenching his teeth.

Palor Toff ran his gaze over the android. The strange trader had dispensed with the golden halo-like ornament he had been wearing when Data had seen him last, but his clothes were still richly cut and heavily embroidered. He raised one ringed hand and waved vaguely at the android in greeting.

"Astonishing, quite astonishing. And you say you shan't be keeping him?"

Fajo shrugged. "He's too much trouble to keep. Besides, I'm being paid a _fortune_ to deliver him."

"Perhaps, you and I could come to some arrangement? You know I have a weakness for... pretty things." Toff was circling Data like a shark, his hungry eyes devouring the shining skinned, sculpted form.

"Ah, alas, my friend." Fajo shook his head sadly. "This is one client that I wouldn't care to cross! He is... very inventive. But..." Fajo stepped forward and put an arm over Toff's shoulder. "We can certainly entertain ourselves for a time. My client has been most lenient in his guidelines for how this android should be treated."

Toff chuckled throatily. "I see... and I suppose you've already had some fun with him, hmm? I hope you haven't broken him too much!" He turned his gaze back to Data, who trembled.

"He will do whatever you ask of him. Won't you Data?" Fajo crowed. Data closed his eyes. The better he was, the faster it would be over. No more pain, no more damage.

"Yes."

"There's my good boy." Fajo cooed. "Drink?" Toff nodded and they furnished themselves with beverages from the replicator while they talked.

"Oh, Data?" Fajo called as he seated himself on the couch. "We never did finish our game. How many questions do I have left?"

"Eleven."

"Oh Kivas, are you playing silly games again? You can't think of anything better to do with this beautiful machine that ask it questions?" Toff hadn't sat with Fajo, but instead had gone back to gaze at the android wonderingly. Fajo was feigning detachment, but his eyes glowed with pride at the wonder his new possession was invoking in his friend.

"I've thought of plenty of other things to do with him, and trust me, we've done some already. But we were just playing Twenty Questions. It's a guessing game."

"Oh?" Toff stepped up to Data, eye-to-eye, to examine him minutely. Data felt the fear like ice down his spine. "And what are you guessing?"

"Data? Tell him what I'm trying to find out." Fajo was loving this, Data could see the smug grin on the Zibalian's face.

"He is attempting to ascertain the identity of my lover aboard the Enterprise by asking me a series of questions, which must be phrased in such a way that the answer may be either 'yes' or 'no'. There is an upper limit of twenty questions total, hence the name of the game."

Toff stared at the android for a moment before turning back to Fajo. "Verbose, isn't he?"

"I quite like it, I enjoy the formality, gives everything a sense of class." Fajo gestured airily with his glass. "Data, I think that, seeing as we have a guest now, we should give up on the game. Tell me who it is."

"Why?" Data knew that this was dangerous, that Fajo may take offense, but he gambled on the presence of Palor Toff, hoping that Fajo would not be willing to abuse his new 'possession' in front of his friend.

"Why?" Fajo scoffed. Data saw the hard glint in the Zibalian's eyes, warning. "Because I asked you a question, and I expect you to answer it."

"I do not wish to tell you the answer." This was foolish; Data knew he was 'on thin ice' as his human friends might have said. There was no real reason for him to keep the name a secret, no-one else would ever know, but somehow it felt like giving a piece of himself up. As Fajo reached for the monofilament crop, Data wondered uneasily if he had overplayed his hand.

"Is this really the hill you want to die on, android?" Murmured Fajo, unsheathing the vicious whip and strolling towards Data. Palor Toff smirked.

"Oh dear, still not terribly obedient, is he? What will you do to him, dear Kivas?" Data watched his tormentor lock eyes with the other collector, a shared smile passed between them, a glance deep with meaning.

"Did you know that he's never been penetrated?" Said Fajo, conversationally. "He and his as-yet-nameless lover are apparently not that intimately acquainted. I suppose the question is, who gets to go first?"

Data stepped back. It was completely involuntary, but the sharp glance that Fajo threw him told Data that it was the wrong thing to do.

"Who said you could move?" The Zibalian shouted. The crop flicked out, and Data gasped as it scored a deep cut across his pectorals.

"Oh, look, he _bleeds_!" Cried Toff in delight. "I was worried we would miss that. How wonderful!"

The blade slashed back, two parallel lines of oozing fluid adorning the pale midriff, and Data strangled a cry. Fajo's hand was heavier, the cuts deeper. Data had felt the scrape of the tiny hooks on the synthetic musculature under his bioplast skin.

"... and look what I found yesterday." Fajo breathed, and slashed the crop across the android's left nipple. Data shrieked as the barbs bit, tearing and ripping the hyper-sensitive area and clawing through to the metal beneath. He clapped his hand up over the wound, and Fajo lashed the back of his wrist.

"Arms by your side, there's a good boy."

Data put his arm down, his palm slick with hydraulic fluid. He realised that he was trembling, his chest shuddering as he tried to hold back his sobs of horror and fear.

"Now. The name, Data."

"... La Forge." He felt as though his soul was being torn out of his mouth with the name, the guilt overwhelming. Something inside his mind bent and broke and shattered his thoughts. He was not supposed to tell anyone, Geordi had asked hm nt t tllll nywnnnnn.

"He has fascinating reactions, doesn't he? Why on earth would this be so important to a machine?"

Data couldn't tell who was speaking. Something had happened inside his head, one conflict too many. Morality, modesty, ethical, promises, secrets, fear pain horror fear pain fear pain fear pain

"If this is what it takes to get him to behave, I'm all for it." Yes, behave, that's all he had to do and the fear pain fear pain fear pain would stop stop stp stp spspsps

"Hands and knees, Data." Hands and knees and soft carpet under his fingers and feet. There was someone under him, someone with glossy hair and a painted face, and they were urging him to sit back, which was strange because they just said they wanted him on his hands and knees hands and knees handsandkneesandkneesknees

"There's a good boy." Kivas Fajo, that was the man's name, he was a Zibalian trader and he had his hands on Data's buttocks and was spreading them wide. A third hand three hands how many hands whose hand was between the cheeks, smearing something on his anal opening. He opened his mouth to protest but nothing came out but a creaking moan.

"Sit on it." He didn't want to, he understood that much, he didn't want, this was something special and he was waiting for someone else and nononononono

"I do not consent." Croaked the android.

"I don't need your consent." Growled the Zibalian. He gripped Data's pelvis and pushed him down onto his straining cock. The android shrieked at the shock of penetration, and Fajo took the opportunity of his surprise to press himself up to the hilt in the quivering synthetic flesh. The android jerked forwards, his eyes wide and horrified. Fajo groaned as the tunnel tightened around him, and he rocked his hips back and pushed the android down onto him.

This was bad, very bad. It hurt, a deep aching pain, and it was so intimate and violating. He could feel every crease and seam and vein on Fajo's prick as it slid in and out of him, and he was too weak to break away, and so confused. His mind was a howling maelstrom of warning after warning after warning and rapidly activating subroutines that he had to keep shutting down because there was too much going on in his _head_ and he wanted it to stop stop stop

"Please, please stop please stop stop."

"Oh my sweet boy, we're just getting started." He was being repositioned and now the Zibalian's penis was rubbing against a new thing inside, something that Data didn't know he had and suddenly he realised that his sexual behaviour subroutine had activated and it hurt, every time Fajo pushed into him it hurt, but it wasn't a physical pain it was a pain in his head and in his soul.

"Oh, Kivas, look at his lovely prick!" There was a hand around his sex now and the other one, Palor Toff, was touching him. Data was gasping and sobbing as Fajo pressed him down and pounded into him with sharp thrusts of his hips. He didn't want to have an erection but he did, and the strange alien with the holes in his face was stroking it and squeezing it.

"Kivas, you must let me play. Don't be selfish."

"I'm not stopping you, get behind."

Data felt hands on his shoulders, pushing him forwards. He was almost lying on Fajo now, knees tucked up, the damaged bioplast on his stomach and chest dripping golden onto the Zibalian's blue velvet shirt. His hard length was sandwiched between their bodies and it ached and throbbed and he hated it. He tried to shut down the subroutine, but Fajo wiggled his hips and touched something inside him with his cock, and the subroutine failed to shut down.

There was a new pressure, now. Something else at the entrance to his anal passage. The tip of Palor Toff's strange alien sex organ.

"No!" Data shrieked, fingers clawing into the carpet. Fajo dealt him a ringing slap across the face, and Toff pushed his sex into the tight opening.

Data screamed then, the pain ripping through him as the strange length was shoved inside him. It was as bizarre as the alien's face, with openings down the sides allowing bony protrusions to peek through, and they rasped against the delicate sensors deep in his body, and it was too big, too big and it was too much. Fajo groaned with pleasure underneath him, and then Toff was holding Data's hips and pulling him back and down and they were both inside him now, his head swimming, his own cock standing pale and hard and wanting. Toff reached around to touch it and Data shrieked again, the stimulation too much, the clamour in his head and the abuse of the two pricks inside him and he couldn't think or get away and he wanted it to stop stop stop and they wouldn't listen.

"Palor..." Fajo said in warning, and Toff slowed his movements to allow the Zibalian to shove himself in deeper and harder, rubbing his hard length against the one sharing the android's hole. Data shuddered and cried out as he felt Fajo's cock jerk inside him and the gush of liquid signalling the Zibalian's climax. Fajo growled with pleasure, grinding himself up and in against Toff's sex organ, wringing the last from his orgasm.

"Mine now, I think." Purred Toff as Fajo's softening cock slid wetly from the opening. Fajo pushed Data up and slid out from under him. He tucked his flaccid cock back into his pants and strolled over to slump on the sofa with his drink to watch as Toff shoved the android down again, one hand on the back of Data's head, grinding his cheek into the carpet. He set about the task of achieving his own satisfaction with aggression, his hand on Data's head holding him still, his other around the android's taut erection. Data's eyes were wide, his mouth gaping, and he was gasping for air, his fingers scrabbling at the carpet. His mind was an addled mess, the sensory information overloading his net, and the tipping point came when Toff shoved his complete length into him and something inside him ruptured. He screamed, the sound metallic and shrill from his overloaded vocal synthesiser, and the fearpainfearpainfearpain became nothing.

* * *

He reactivated seconds later. He was on his side on the carpet, curled up with his knees to his chest. The first sensation he experience was one of emptiness, both physically and mentally. He felt numb, his mind clear, his chest aching and hollow. Then came the pain, the raw burning of torn and ruptured bioplast, the deep smouldering ache of broken sensors. Then came the emotions; Fear. Guilt. Horror. Revulsion. Shame. Humiliation. He had a moment of relief when he realised that his sexual behaviour subroutine had finally shut down, but it was poor consolation.

"... hardly two days and you've broken him!" Someone laughed.

"Ah! He's awake. Glad you could join us again."

Data forced his eyes to focus on the two figures sitting on the couch.

"Data, it's very rude to fall asleep like that, in the middle of our fun! Come on over here and say you're sorry."

Data pushed himself onto his hands and knees and rested there for a moment, limbs quivering. He felt something running down the inside of his thigh.

"Come. Here."

He couldn't stand, it hurt too much, everything ached or burned. He drew a sobbing breath and crawled as the two men laughed, until he reached the couch where they sat waiting for him.

"My good boy." Crooned Fajo, stroking Data's hair. "You left my friend a bit disappointed, and we don't want that, do we? So show him what a good boy you are, my perfect doll, my lovely toy."

Data raised his head to look first at Kivas Fajo, then at Palor Toff. The strange alien smiled down at him, eyes glittering. Data knew what was required of him. Toff's sex organ was still erect, standing proud from the opening in his clothes. Data opened his mouth and swallowed the bizarre phallus into his throat. It tasted foul, the bitterness of Fajo's ejaculate and the secretions from the bony openings combined with the taste of his own fluids, haemorrhaged onto Toff's prick from his ruptured and sundered anal cavity. He hadn't known until that moment that he had any kind of gag reflex, and he physically had to swallow his revulsion, his throat convulsing around the head of Toff's cock and making the alien growl with pleasure. Palor put his hands on the back of Data's head and pushed him down. His sex was much bigger that either Fajo's or Geordi's, and the android struggled as it was shoved down his throat. He reached up and wrapped one hand around the base and began moving his head up and down the shaft, massaging it with his tongue. He closed his nostrils, shut his eyes, anything to avoid collecting any more information that he would be forced to remember.

Palor was grunting rhythmically, and the hands in Data's hair clenched and suddenly the bony plates in that bizarre organ were rasping against his throat as Toff shoved the android's head onto his crotch. Data's nose smacked into the pelvic bone and he retched as the alien groaned, semen spurting down his distended gullet. Data moaned onto the cock, Toff chuckling with pleasure as he unloaded into the android.

"You were right, dear Kivas. He _is_ wonderful at this. I'll give you five bars of Latinum."

Toff hadn't released his head, the strange organ scraping his throat as it constricted. Data pushed at Toff's thighs.

"Ha! You and I both know he's worth more than five _bricks_. But it wouldn't matter, even if you had it, I can't back out of this deal."

He couldn't breathe. He didn't _need_ to breathe, but he would soon, if he was going to keep his internal temperature down. He scrabbled again at Palor Toff's legs.

"Kivas, I've never heard the like! You know that there hasn't been a contract written that you and I couldn't find a loophole in."

Data bit.

He didn't want to, he knew that it would lead to more pain, but he had run out of options. It wasn't hard, didn't even break the skin, but Palor Toff reacted as if he had been shot. He shoved the android off and away, bellowing in rage and pain.

"How _dare_ you?" He roared. He tucked his injured member inside his clothes and pulled a short knife from his waistband.

Fajo laughed and raised his glass in a sarcastic toast as he watched the android cower, throwing one arm over his face futilely as Toff advanced on him.

Palor grabbed that raised arm and thrust the knife up into the android's underarm, driving for the joint. There was gout of golden liquid and the android screamed, Palor pushing the knife deeper, trying to separate the arm from the shoulder. There was a wet crunch as the blade parted something pliable, and a sharp retort as Toff twisted the blade, snapping the tip off in Data's shoulder. Toff withdrew the remains of the dagger, tossing it aside in contempt and striding towards the door.

"I see what you mean, Kivas, he's far too much trouble. But, I have stayed longer than I should... you must be nearing the rendezvous point, yes?"

"Oh yes, not long now. Still, you must admit it was fun having him for a while. One moment, Palor, and I'll see you to your ship."

Fajo strolled to the hateful device and stabbed viciously at the controls. Data tried to croak a protest, but his mind clamped shut and the signals to his body stopped, and he slumped where he lay, curled with his knees to his chest, one hand gripping the wound. Fajo walked to where the now immobile android lay, and thumped the toe of his boot into Data's spine. The android whimpered, but made no move. Satisfied, Fajo went to accompany his friend off his ship, in preparation for the meeting with his client.

* * *

Data lay curled on the floor, crushed under the weight of his own body. He could feel the seep of fluid between his fingers. He wondered whether Fajo knew that this treatment would eventually force him into shutdown, or whether the Zibalian cared. He swallowed hard as he felt his gorge rise. It seemed that Palor Toff's seminal fluid was incompatible with his bio-functions and something autonomous had activated, trying to purge his system. If Fajo came back, and he had expelled the matter, the punishment would be severe.

Did it matter? If he was punished any more, for disobedience or answering back, or not answering, would he care if he shut down? Maybe it would be for the best, and then no more pain, no more fear, no more shame or embarrassment or hurt, just nothing. Perhaps that would be preferable. The only thing he had to pin his hopes on was rescue. If he were to be rescued, then Geordi could fix him. Geordi could fix his body, and his mind and his soul.

One last chance, then. His head twitched as he activated the visual acuity transmitter. Fajo would be distracted, with Palor Toff leaving and the meeting with his client, perhaps he could broadcast the signal for a little longer before he was punished.

He shut down all non-essential systems and focused his eyes on the patch of carpet in front of his face. He used every shred of power that he could spare to broadcast the subspace signal out into the ether, and watched as his hydraulic fluid soaked into the pale fibres in front of his nose.

* * *

It was twelve minutes, fifteen point oh-three seconds before Fajo came back, storming into the room and snatching up the crop. A crewman trailed him in, handheld scanner at the ready.

"Turn it off, Data, do it NOW." He lashed the prone android across his taut back, laying his bioplast open from shoulder to hip with one long swing of his arm. The android screamed and circulatory fluid welled into the long gash, seeping and trickling in rivulets across the white-gold skin.

"Has he switched it off?"

"No, sir, he's still broadcasting."

"Data? NOW!" Fajo snapped. The crop swished and caught the android's shoulder, whipping across his cheek and removing a sliver of his ear.

"Sir? There's... there's something on the scanners!"

"Is it our man?"

"No, it's... "

A sound filled Data's ears, one that he had been wishing for, hoping for so long that for a moment he thought that he must be dreaming. The tinkling, ringing hum of a transporter beam.

"Drop it! Hands up!" Riker's strong voice boomed through the room. Data heard the crop hit the carpet, followed by the handheld scanner.

"Data..." The android felt a hand on his shoulder and he flinched, he couldn't help it.

"Shit. Oh shit. Here... hang on." He felt something being draped over him, a uniform jacket to judge by the texture.

"Enterprise, we've got him, I need you to beam me and Data direct to engineering."


	13. Chapter 13

Narsil – The Blade that was Broken

Chapter One; Turpitudo

_Turpitudo. Noun. 1. Disgrace. 2. Nakedness. . 4. Depravity.5. Ugliness/deformity._

* * *

They had finally found the ship. The signal from the visual acuity transmitter was spotty at the best of times, and it seemed to have disappeared altogether for a while. However, Geordi's perseverance had paid off, and when his retuned scanners picked up the signal he almost shouted out loud with joy.

His delight at finding the ship was brutally short-lived.

* * *

"Here, get a blanket."

"Commander... what's wrong with him?"

"I don't know. Where's Geordi?"

"I'll get him, he's preparing a workspace."

"Quickly. Data? Data, can you hear me?"

He was finally free of the restriction of that miserable device. He heaved a huge lungful of air into his cooling cavity and cried out as the expanding of his ribs opened wide the gash on his back.

"Here, sir."

Data felt hands on him, wrapping something around him, and he was pathetically grateful for the covering of his nakedness. The blanket was too warm, but that was better than the embarrassment.

"Okay, give me a hand, we'll get him up there. Geordi?"

"One moment, Commander." That was Geordi's voice. He opened his mouth to call for him, but nothing came out but a groan as the hands grabbed and lifted him. He was placed on a hard surface, and there were people all around and they were looking and staring and talking.

"Geordi." He croaked.

"Okay, I'm here... What... What's happened to you?" Data could hear the shock and horror in his friend's voice and he cringed. He knew how he looked, felt sure that Geordi could see the marks of his shameful acts tattooed on his skin. Maybe he could smell the other men on him... He gagged on the memory of the taste in his mouth.

"Looks like that wound under his arm is the worst of it. He's lost a lot of circulatory fluid. Data, you've gotta move your hand, let me see." It was Geordi, he reminded himself, Geordi wouldn't hurt him. Slowly he uncurled his arm from his face and looked up into the face of the engineer. Geordi's brow was furrowed deeply over his visor, and he was holding a sonic driver. The thought of having the tool inserted into the knife wound made Data shudder. With sudden clarity, he realised that he didn't need an engineer.

"Doctor." He murmured. "Doctor Crusher, and a medical tricorder."

Geordi rubbed the back of his neck and sighed.

"Okay. Okay, I'll call her." He tapped his combadge and quickly outlined the situation to the CMO.

"I'll be there in a moment. Crusher out."

"I'm heading back over to the Jovis." Riker said. "I want as much evidence of illegal activity as I can get my hands on, we're going to nail this bastard to the wall." He patted Data sympathetically on the shoulder and strode out.

Geordi leaned down close to the android's face.

"Data." He whispered. "What _happened?_ How did he do this to you?"

"Geordi." Data held up his hand. Geordi gripped it tight, willing strength into the android.

"I... I was so worried..." Geordi shook his head. "I thought I might never see you again. And, the last time we spoke it was an argument, and it was just killing me that that might be the last thing I'd ever say to you. I... I'm sorry. You know that, right?"

Data opened his mouth to answer but retched instead. His system was trying to purge itself of the stagnant material in his stomach.

"I'm here." Crusher came bustling into engineering, her white coat flapping in her wake. She pushed past a gaggle of engineers and made her way to Geordi's side.

"Hello, Data." She had her 'doctor' face on, the one she had to wear every time she patched up her friends. She smiled tightly. "What can I help with?"

"Scan..." He said weakly. Then his golden eyes widened in panic and he clawed his way to the edge of the work station he was lying on, gagging. With a heave, he regurgitated a spatter of milky foam onto the floor, feet scrabbling for purchase as his synthetic muscles spasmed. He spat and coughed the last of the matter from him, finally ridding himself of the foul stuff of his sins.

"Whoa!" Geordi let go of his hand to step back. "What is that?"

Crusher was already scanning, and her face had gone deathly pale. She looked at the scanner, looked at Data, and then round at the gaggle of engineers behind her.

"Out." She turned to the rest of the room. "Everyone, out, now. I'll let you know when you can return to your duties. Go, everyone, out. You too, Geordi." She turned to the engineer.

"Now, wait just a second..." Geordi began, but Data reached out and grabbed his sleeve.

"Geordi. Stay." He was breathing hard, and his eyes seemed too yellow bright, almost feverish.

"Are you sure you want him here?" Crusher's face was white, her lips drawn taut. Data nodded.

"Yes, I... he is... my friend."

"D'you mind telling me what's going on?" Geordi said, scowling at the doctor. She watched the last few people leave before turning back to the engineer. She opened her mouth and then closed it again, shaking her head.

"It's semen."

"What?" Geordi's eyebrows shot up, and he darted a glance at the android.

"It's..." She took a deep breath to collect herself as she ran the scanner over Data's body. "There are two distinct types, different species. One is Zibalian, the other, I don't know..." She paused in her scan to wipe a hand over her white face. "There are both types of genetic material present in his anal cavity as well, and... it's... he's been damaged internally, torn. Data..." She dropped the scanner onto the blanket and bent over the bed, resting her elbows on the edge to bury her face in her hands.

"I did not consent." The android murmured. He looked up at Geordi, whose dark face had gone ashen. "I am so sorry, Geordi."

"No..." Geordi moaned. "No, you don't have to apologise, it's okay, it's not your fault." He bent to rest his forehead on the android's, one hand on his face. "We'll fix you up, don't worry."

"I'll need to get some equipment, and... take samples..." Crusher stood and scrubbed the heels of her hands into her eyes. She took a deep breath. "Data, I'm going to need to examine you."

"Deactivate me."

"Data, no, you hate that, you told me." Geordi stood up, one hand resting on the android's shoulder. Data's eyes were fixed on him.

"I do, but at the moment, it is preferable. No more, please. I have had enough. Let me simply have nothing for a time. Please."

Geordi nodded slowly, and walked around the work station to pull the blanket down and expose the android's back. He heard Crusher hiss between her teeth at the sight of the ugly wound as his hand brushed the switch embedded in Data's spine. He leant forward to whisper in the android's ear.

"Sleep. I'll be here when you come back online."

He pressed his fingers into the depression and found the switch, pressed it firmly. He hadn't realised how tense Data was until the now inactive android relaxed, slumping onto the table limply.

Geordi took off his visor and pressed his fingers into his temples, his jaw clenching and unclenching. Crusher was looking down at Data sadly, brushing his tousled hair away from his face. Geordi snapped his visor back on and strode towards the turbolift.

"Where are you going?" Asked Crusher, startled.

"I'm going to fucking kill him."

Crusher darted after him, grabbed his arm, and he shook her off, fury lending him strength.

"Geordi, no, come here!" She grabbed him again, both hands round his arm. He scowled at her. She glared right back.

"Do you really think that's what Data would want? For you to go storming off while he lies there bleeding? If you want something to do, well, there it is!" She gestured to the prone android. "He needs you, Geordi. Come on." She pulled his arm and his shoulders slumped, and he allowed her to lead him back to the table. She tapped her combadge, her face drawn and grim.

"Crusher to Selar. I need you to bring some equipment to engineering. I'll send you a list, just gather it up and leave it outside, we'll get it when we need it."

"Acknowledged."

"Crusher to Daniels. I need a two man security detail set up outside engineering. No one comes in without my express permission, until further notice."

"Understood."

She sighed through her nose and looked at the engineer.

"Someone needs to tell the Captain what's going on."

"You're not suggesting we tell him..."

"Absolutely not." Crusher said, firmly. "But he needs to be appraised of the situation. You get started here, I'll talk to Jean-luc." She walked to the turbolift, head down and deep in thought, and Geordi turned to the android and picked up his tools.

* * *

"Hey, Data. It's me. We're all done."

He opened his eyes slowly. He was still half afraid that this was some elaborate fantasy, and that any moment he would wake on the _Jovis_ with Kivas Fajo grinning down at him. He shuddered.

"It's okay, it's just me, there's no-one else here." Geordi. The dark skinned man was stroking his hair away from his forehead. Data looked up at the engineer, drinking in the sight of his face.

"I require clothing. Civilian."

Geordi frowned. "Why? I'm not sure I've ever seen you wear anything but uniform, unless we were on the holodeck."

Data tried to work out how to tell his friend that the thought of putting his Starfleet uniform on his soiled body was abhorrent, that he had not behaved as an officer should, that he had betrayed his position by his behaviour, had cracked under pressure, did not deserve his rank insignia.

"I do not want to wear a uniform."

"Oh. Okay, that's fine, I'll get you something else." Geordi, still puzzled, moved to the replicator and returned moments later with a simple tunic and slacks in charcoal grey.

Data dressed hurriedly, keeping the blanket over his body awkwardly. As soon as he was clothed he swung his legs over the side of the table and then stood. Geordi grabbed his arm as he lurched sideways.

"Whoa! Careful now, we've done a lot of work, but you still need calibration."

"I want to go to my quarters."

"Yeah, okay, but slowly, I'll help." Geordi slung one of the android's arms over his shoulders and steadied him as they moved out of engineering. He would have liked to have kept Data there for tests and observation, but he could understand his desire for privacy, and the familiar comforts of home.

In the turbolift Data leant against the engineer, allowing the repaired parts time to adjust.

"How are you feeling? You're so quiet, it's weird, you're normally so _verbose_ _isn't he?" "I quite like it, I enjoy the formality, gives everything a sense of class." Fajo gestured airily with his glass. "Data, _come on, out of the lift." Geordi had a hand on his arm, pulling gently. Data allowed himself to be led to his rooms, guided in through the door. He walked straight into the bathroom, shedding the clothes as he walked, and climbed into the shower. He slumped against the wall, allowing the pulsing waves to cleanse the filth from his body. His legs had given way, but he couldn't remember sitting down, then Geordi was holding his hand, crouched in front of him on his knees_ and hands andkneesandhands _and talking gently, and he was being led to the couch and Geordi was holding out_ these lovely new clothes and sit in the chair. _ So he got dressed and waited to be told what to do next.

A minute or two later the door chimed. Geordi acknowledged, and Deanna Troi entered. Her dark eyes were wide and sad, and she hurried straight to the couch to sit beside the android. She spent a long moment simply sitting next to him, watching and reaching out with her mind to explore his emotional state. She reached out and took his hand, and he turned his head to look at her.

"I thought that I would feel sad, or angry, but I feel nothing. Why?"

"It's very common to have periods of emotional numbness after a traumatic experience like yours. It's a sign of shock."

Data nodded to himself thoughtfully. "When will it stop?"

"It's different for everyone. But you will get better, we're here to help you."

"I'll leave you two to talk." Geordi turned to the door.

"No, Geordi, please stay." Data reached up to him, beckoning. Geordi sighed, folded his arms.

"I... I don't know if I'm comfortable eves-dropping on this kind of thing."

Troi cocked her head at him, puzzled. "This does affect you directly, Geordi. Your relationship is going to..."

"Our... Our relationship?" Geordi's eyebrows shot up and he turned to Data. "What happened to keeping secrets?"

To Geordi's astonishment the stoic android seemed to crumple, folding in on himself. "I... I did not want to tell, he made me, I tried, Geordi I tried, I did not want to tell, you did not want me to tell..." His voice tailed away and he sat staring at his lap. Deanna squeezed his hand gently, looked up at Geordi.

"He didn't tell me. Have you really forgotten that I'm an empath? I've known for weeks." She frowned at the engineer. Geordi shook his head and laughed bitterly.

"You're wrong, there's nothing between us. Nothing 'substantial enough to break', isn't that what you said?" Geordi threw the words out, caustic and careless. He had thought his heart would die when Data was lost, had cherished the thought of their reunion, but all the anger and bitterness he had thought buried had come bleeding to the surface like a lanced boil when confronted with the knowledge that their relationship was not secret. He was angry with Data, angry for making him care, making him worry and weep in the dark, and the shame of their sordid affair was a burning pain in his chest.

He had wanted to wound with his words, but when they hit home he immediately wished he could take them back. If, somehow, he could have turned the razor sharpness of them on himself, he would have thrown himself onto his words to protect his lover. But it was too late, and they had flown from his lips like darts and buried themselves deep.

Data seemed to have frozen solid. He made no move, didn't raise his head. He just said two words.

"Get out."

"Data, I'm so sorry, I... I didn't mean..."

Data's head snapped up and he surged to his feet, Troi yelping in shock as he tore his hand from hers and advanced on the engineer, eyes blazing.

"GET. OUT." He didn't open his mouth any wider than he would have had to to speak, but he had turned his vocal synthesiser up to a level where the words were an almost physical pressure on Geordi's ears. The engineer flinched, and did as he was told. As the door slid shut behind him, Data sank to his knees_andhandsandknees_ and then the tears came, tearing, wracking sobs wrenched from his chest in hysterical gasps. Troi knelt down next to him and cradled his head on her shoulder and rocked him like a child, murmuring soothing nothings and soaking his hair with her own tears as he howled.


	14. Chapter 14

Chapter Two; Sordeo

_Sordeo. Verb. 1. Be dirty/soiled. 2. Seem unworthy/not good enough/ignoble._

* * *

Data spent the next three days in his quarters. He painted, drew, listened to music, practiced on his violin, clarinet and guitar. He balked at writing his report, the thought of detailing everything that had happened too hurtful. He updated his personal log, and then deleted it. He thought several times about deactivating himself, or wiping his memory.

"And what made you stop _stop stop please stop_? What made you decide to keep your memories?"

"... I have good memories, as well as bad. The negative memories and the emotions associated with them are painful, but if I were to remove them I would also lose all of the positive memories, and that would not be beneficial."

"That's very true. Sometimes, one kind of emotion overrides all the others, but that doesn't mean that you _'ve been touched like this before, yes?_ shouldn't have those feelings. What you need is to learn to _behave _manage them in a healthy way."

"I have been investigating cognitive behavioural therapy, and believe I may be able to apply some of the techniques to my own situation."

"That's great, CBT is a good system, you'll get some good coping strategies from that. If you want_ to be penetrated?_ me to help you..."

"No, thank you Counselor, I believe I have all of the resources I need."

"Barclay is looking after Spot for you at the moment. Do you think it would help to have her here? I am sure she misses you and her _lovely new_ toys."

"I am sure Lieutenant Barclay is taking good care of her."

"We're having our poker game _it'll be fun!" Fajo clasped his hands close_ tonight, we'd love you to come along. It may be good for you to be around your friends. Will you come?"

"No, I do not think so."

* * *

He woke from his dream program at oh-three hundred hours, fourteen minutes and twelve seconds, screaming. He spoke to the Counsellor every day, but still couldn't tell her what had happened. He punched a hole through the wall. He destroyed his painting and broke the clarinet. He refused to answer the door to Geordi four times.

* * *

"Don't you _like this, Data?_ think that talking to Geordi would help? He's your closest friend."

"I... I do not want him to see me."

"He knows that you're _my good boy_ unhappy. He'd like to talk to you, to apologise."

"I do not want to see him."

* * *

He updated his personal log again, and deleted it. He jumped when his door chimed, and when his combadge beeped. He experienced a twenty-three minute and six second long bout of hysteria when all he could do was weep and gasp for air. He stripped all of the bioplast from his right calf and removed all of the sensor clusters, and then painstakingly put it back together again.

* * *

"It wasn't your fault. Geordi found the controller in the gallery. We believe you _what a good boy you are, my perfect doll, my lovely toy_. You must stop believing that you are responsible for what happened to you."

* * *

He checked his body in the mirror for visible marks of his abuse. He drank several glasses of water and then induced vomiting because he was sure there was still something in his stomach.

* * *

"You don't have to tell me anything that you don't _need your consent_ want to."

* * *

He developed several coping strategies for times when he felt overwhelmed. He painted and drew and played the violin. He updated his personal log and deleted it again. He punched another hole in the wall. He spent three and a half hours lying on the floor staring at the ceiling. He listened to music.

* * *

"The Captain needs to talk to you. I'll come as well, I'll be right here, okay?"

* * *

"Data. I'm glad to see you _cannot begin to imagine how... alluring you are_, hmm?"

Data blinked, looked at Picard. They were in the ready room, just off the bridge, and the Captain was seated behind his desk looking at him quizzically. Data felt Troi's hand touch his arm.

"I apologise, could you repeat that, sir?"

"Are you well?"

Data opened his mouth and then closed it again. His eyes flicked from left to right and back again, before focusing once more on the Captain.

"I am... improving."

"Good. Good, I'm glad to hear it." Picard leaned back in his chair and steepled his fingers. "I'm afraid that I am obliged to be the bearer of bad news."

"I understand."

"Kivas Fajo is denying all charges relating to his treatment of you. Now, I am not aware of the particulars surrounding these allegations, and quite frankly I think I'd be happier not knowing _morality, modesty, ethical, promises, secrets, fear pain horror fear pain fear pain fear pain_ But it does mean that there will be a trial, and you will be required to make a statement. Now, you're perfectly welcome to do this in writing, or _too much going on in his head and he wanted it to stop stop stop _but of course it's entirely up to you. You don't have to _that's all he had to do and the fear pain fear pain fear pain would stop stop stp stp spspsps_ so let me know when you've decided, alright?"

"Yes sir."

"Good. Well, let Commander Riker know when you feel well enough to resume your duties. We're looking forward to having you _ever been with a man before? _back on the bridge."

"Thank you, sir."

"Dismissed."


	15. Chapter 15

Chapter Three; Emendo

_Emendo. Verb. 1. Correct, repair. , free from errors._

* * *

"Data to La Forge."

Geordi was so startled he dropped the PADD he was holding, and it clattered loudly onto the console in front of him. He fumbled for it as it bounced off the screen, and it slipped through his shaking fingers and tumbled to the floor.

"La Forge here." He picked the PADD up and straightened, listening intently to the com.

"I require your assistance with a technical matter."

"Okay, I'll be there in a moment. La Forge out." He cut the signal and handed off the PADD to Jensen. "Can you finish these calibrations? I'll be back in a bit."

"... Yes, sir." Jensen replied, scowling at the PADD.

* * *

He almost ran down the corridor, had to pause and take a breath. He buzzed at Data's quarters.

"Enter."

All of the eagerness drained from his body as the doors opened, to be replaced by a cold chill of nervousness. Everything in Data's quarters seemed perfectly normal, except for the android himself, who was sitting in the corner of the room with his back against the wall.

"Hello Geordi."

"Hey. You wanted me?" Geordi moved into the room far enough that the door would close, but didn't approach Data.

"Yes. I have been working on a design for an alteration to my circuitry to enable me to switch my emotion chip on and off whenever I require it."

"Okay. D'you really think that's necessary?"

Data looked up at him. "I would rather feel nothing than what I am feeling now. If I had been able to turn the chip off, then my abuse at Kivas Fajo's hands would not have affected me so profoundly. I am unable to return to my duties, and I am unable to enjoy my free time. I have had enough, I do not want these emotions."

Geordi sighed and sat on the couch. "Have you talked to Deanna about this?"

"I do not see why I should have to."

"Well, she's your Counselor. It's kinda her job."

Data closed his eyes and rested his head back against the wall. "I am sure that she would try to convince me not to make the modifications and strive instead to learn to adapt to these feelings. But that is a human way of behaving, to be forced to cope with negative emotion. As an android, why should I not choose to divest myself of these feelings so that I can regain my life?"

"Well, as I see it, if you turn the chip off then yeah, you won't have to deal with those feelings. But if you want to turn it back on, what's to say that you won't have to cope with the negative emotions then? Like, say something reminds you? You'll have to cope then anyway, but you'll be less prepared, because instead of learning to deal with it, you'd be pretending those feelings didn't exist."

"If that is the case, then I shall leave the chip switched off."

"But then you're missing all the good stuff too. What about all the great experiences you've had since we fitted the chip?"

"Are you referring to experiences like falling in love?" Data looked at Geordi through hooded eyes, just a sliver of gold showing between the narrowed lids.

"... Yeah." Geordi snapped his visor off and leant his head on the back of the couch. "Listen, I've been an ass. I'm just... I'm so sorry, you know that. I can't say it enough. And I'm sorry for everything. For, for pretending I didn't care about you, making you feel like I was ashamed... It's not okay, to treat someone like that. And I do care, I do, I care about you a lot, and... I really want to try this whole thing again. I want to be with you. Because, I really like you, and... I missed you so much, I was terrified I was gonna lose you. And when we got you back, and you were so scared and hurt... It just broke me up, inside, you know? I guess, I'm asking, can you forgive me? For being, so, so stupid, and..." Geordi's voice tailed off when he realised he was rambling. He scrubbed the heels of his hands into his eyes, and then turned his sightless gaze to Data. He heard the android shuffle his feet on the carpet and draw a shuddering breath.

"Please, do not ask this of me now. I... I cannot answer you, not now, it... it is too much."

"It's okay, I know, and... I don't care how long you take. Just, think about it, okay? Let's get you better first."

Geordi heard the android rise to his feet and approach the couch. He felt a hand on his, pulling him up, and then strong, solid arms wrapping him and pressing him close to a warm body. He put his arms round Data in turn, putting his chin on the android's shoulder as Data buried his face in the crook of his neck.

"I have missed you also."

Geordi felt Data lift his head and press their cheeks together. He leant into the embrace and Data tilted his head and bought their lips into contact. It was soft and simple, and so easy to fall into the sensation and forget everything else. Geordi opened his mouth and flicked his tongue over Data's, sliding his hands up under the shirt the android was wearing to caress his flanks.

Data's head snapped back and he flinched, grabbing Geordi's arms and pushing him firmly away.

"Hey, hey, what... what's wrong?" Geordi reached out, but the android was walking away. Geordi turned to the couch and found his visor, fumbled it back on as Data returned to him, holding out a PADD.

"What's this?"

"The circuit diagrams you will need."

Geordi blew out a sigh. His lips were still tingling from the kiss. "Are you really sure?"

"I am resolved to this course of action. I believe that I have no choice."

"And... what about us?" Geordi looked at the android, who was seating himself at his desk in preparation for the alterations. Data looked pensive.

"I am not sure."

Geordi looked at Data for a moment, then went to replicate the tools he would need. He gently removed Data's cranial plate, exposing the extraordinary circuitry within. He looked at the diagram, at the fused chip, and gently began the modifications.

"I can't begin to imagine how you feel, I really can't. But I don't understand how you can believe that you'll be better off without any emotion at all."

Data made no comment, and Geordi sighed through his nose as he tweaked the last tiny wire into place.

"Okay, it's done. So, go ahead. Try it." He put the cap of skull and hair back in place and stood back to observe. Data stared straight forward as he registered the alterations.

"... Did you do it?" The engineer queried.

"No." It was a whisper.

"Why not?"

"I... I do not know."

Geordi folded his arms. "Well, if you want some time to think things through, I'm supposed to be down in engineering right now. So, shall I leave you to it?"

"Please."

"Okay." Geordi put his hand on the android's shoulder as he moved past him to the door. "If you want me to come check on you later, just com me, okay?"

"Understood."

Geordi looked back at the android as the door opened, but Data remained motionless. The engineer shook his head and left.

* * *

As the door closed, Data heaved a sigh, clenching his jaw. He had hoped that being with Geordi would be sufficiently different, but the shock of the memory of Fajo's fingers in his mouth, his hands on his sides, had more than convinced him that he was doing the right thing in turning the chip off.

But the kiss had been so good. Until the memory surfaced, it had been wonderful.

He twitched his head and deactivated the chip.

* * *

That afternoon he put on his uniform. He wrote his report and updated his personal log. He listened to music, and practiced the violin, not that he needed to practice. He reported himself as ready to return to duty, pending a psych evaluation. He painted and drew. He organised a meeting with Counselor Troi for the following day. He had a perfectly normal evening with Geordi, who for some reason seemed to be dissatisfied with the success of the modifications to the android's neural net.

He activated his dream program and upon waking analyzed the images using the interpretative methods of Carl Jung.


	16. Chapter 16

Chapter Four; Sano

_Sano. Verb. 1. Correct. 2. Cure, heal. 3. Quiet_

* * *

"Come in."

"Hello Counselor."

Troi looked up sharply. She had heard the door open, but hadn't sensed Data entering. She looked at him as he sat down across from her, and she realised what was different.

"I'm not sensing any emotions in you." She tried not to make the statement sound accusatory.

"That is correct. We have modified my circuitry so that I may activate and deactivate the emotion chip at will."

"All right. Why is it off now?"

"Because I do not wish for it to be on."

The Counselor sighed and leaned back in her chair. "Data, I know you believe this will be easier, but I don't think it's healthy."

The android cocked his head. "I am functioning again. I am no longer troubled. I am now able to resume my duties, and focus on my hobbies. How can this not be preferable?"

"You might think that this means that you're better, but it doesn't. You're not better, you're just pretending that there's nothing wrong. That's not the same thing."

"I have functioned for many years without emotions, I do not see why I cannot do so again."

"Because it's a step backwards in your evolution." Troi leaned forward, sincere. "Say that... say that your arm was damaged, and it hurts. You could repair it, but instead you remove it. The pain is gone, but you are no longer whole."

"You think that the switching off of my emotion chip lessens me as a person?"

"I don't think it's good for your long-term development." She frowned at him. "I know this has all been terribly difficult, and I can't tell you that it's going to get easier quickly, but we're all here for you. My job is to help you through this, but I can't do that if you won't let me. With that in mind, I can't clear you to return to your duties."

"I do not understand." Data's brow creased. "I performed my duties more than adequately before the installation of the chip..."

"Yes, and that was before. This is now. I'm sorry, Data, but you need to think this through logically. It's just as bad as a human using alcohol or drugs to mask their pain. It's not going to help you get better. Will you think about this for me, please? Come back and see me tomorrow. And talk to Geordi about it."

"He also believes that I have made a mistake in disabling the chip. Thank you Counselor, I will consider your advice." He stood and walked out, his old impassive self.

Troi leaned back in the chair, her face drawn with sadness. "Oh, Data." She sighed.

* * *

"Hey."

"Hello, Geordi. Please come in."

Geordi walked to the couch, took a seat. He watched Data as he moved around the room, fluid and graceful with his long limbs, but that blank face was horrible to Geordi now, like a stranger. Data bought him a coffee and sat down next to him. Briefly he outlined the meeting he'd had with the Counselor while Geordi sipped and nodded encouragement.

"I know that what she said makes sense, it is only logical that I should wish to progress, and so I must learn to adapt. However, I am concerned that I will react badly when I switch the chip back on. That is why I have asked you here. I think that it may be easier for me if I have someone with me."

"Sure. I understand."

"I am curious." Data frowned. "You also seem eager for me to have emotions again. Yet, when I reacted badly to your intimate gesture, I assumed that you would be offended. Why do you wish for me to feel again, if it affects you negatively?"

Geordi looked down into his coffee. "Well... Part of it is that I agree with Deanna, you'll be better off learning to cope. But part of it is that, you... Before, you know, you were... captured... you were so, so passionate, so enthusiastic about things, about us. And, I know it'll take a long time, y'know, for you to be comfortable, but... I want to help. I'd rather deal with your bad times and hope for better, than have to live without the, the other you, the smiling, laughing, _feeling_ Data."

Data nodded thoughtfully. "And if, as a worst case scenario, I am not capable of physical or emotional intimacy due to the trauma of my experiences?"

"Well, then we'll deal with that if and when it happens."

"Very well." Data closed his eyes and twitched his head to the side. He became very still, and for a long moment neither moved nor spoke, until Geordi was concerned that something had gone wrong. Then his lips parted and he drew a trembling breath.

"Hey." Geordi murmured. He held out his hand, palm up, and Data lay his pale hand across it. Geordi gripped and squeezed gently. "You okay?"

Data shook his head. "No."

"I'm here. What do you need?"

"Just this, for the moment."

"Okay." Geordi rubbed his thumb across the back of Data's hand, and the android sighed through his nose. Slowly Data lent sideways to rest his head on Geordi's shoulder.

"You know, you can tell me anything. I mean, if you want, if it'd make you feel better. Get it off your chest."

Data shuddered. "I do not think you want to know."

"Maybe not. But, if you want to talk, I'm here." Geordi rested his cheek on the top of Data's head.

"I..." The android drew a shuddering breath. "I wanted it to be you. My first time. I wanted it to be... For it to be special, between us..." He swallowed hard. "And now..."

"I know. But it doesn't change how I feel about you, you know that?"

"How can you say that? Knowing that I've been... used. How can you not find me... despoiled?"

"What?" Geordi craned his neck down to look into Data's face. "I don't think that about you! No way. It wasn't your fault, and what... what they did to you doesn't change who you are."

"But I am changed. I am different. I am afraid, and ashamed."

Geordi sighed and put his arm round the android's shoulders. "Yeah, you are different. But, inside, you're still you. Don't let them take that from you. You survived, and now you're safe, that's what matters. And we'll make it okay, we'll get you better, and anything I can do to help, you just tell me."

"... Kiss me."

Geordi regarded the android for a moment. "You sure?"

"Yes." Data put a hand to Geordi's shoulder and drew him close. Their lips met, warmth and softness, and Geordi sighed with pleasure. God, he'd missed this, this closeness. But gently, softly, because Data was like a wounded wild animal, nerves frayed and liable to bolt. Geordi reached up to cup the android's cheek and Data responded, running his hand from the engineer's shoulder to the back of his neck.

Data broke the kiss, leaning back with his eyes closed. "I want... Please, you, now." He rose to his feet, drawing Geordi with him, to embrace him tightly and kiss his neck, his cheek and brow. Geordi reached to undo Data's jacked, but firm pale hands gripped his.

"I... I will..." Data took a breath. "Please turn around."

"... Sure." Geordi turned his back, herd the soft sounds of Data removing his clothes and the shuffle of the bedclothes.

"You may turn around, and join me, if you wish."

"I do wish, very much." Data was under the covers, lying on his side, looking up at Geordi. The engineer fumbled his own clothes off and slipped under the sheets.

"Would you prefer if I took my visor off?"

"... If you will be comfortable, yes please."

"Yeah, I'll be fine." Geordi placed it on the small table. "Okay, what do you want me to do?" He asked, but two strong arms were already twining round him and he had barely finished his sentence before his mouth was smothered by his lovers' with breath-stealing intensity. He responded in kind, pressing his body close and putting his hand flat on Data's back, pressing between his shoulder blades. He could feel the synthetic musculature sliding and bunching under the soft bioplast skin and he trembled, feeling the android's arousal against his leg. He felt Data shudder, and he broke the kiss.

"You okay?" He murmured.

"... Touch me, please." Data's breath was fast, his pulse racing, but whether from fear or passion Geordi couldn't say. He kissed the android again, sliding his hand down the smooth pale stomach to touch his sex, stroking gently with his fingers. Data shivered again and reached down with his own hand towards his lover, but Geordi shook his head.

"No, it's okay, I want to focus on you. Just relax, let me do this for you. Tell me what you need."

"More, now." Data pressed his forehead to the man's as Geordi gripped his firmness and began to move, slow and gentle. Data's breathing stuttered as he gasped; "Faster, please, now, faster." Geordi obliged, pressing his lover close.

"Would you like me to go down on you?" Geordi murmured.

"No! No, I... I want to see your face, I... I need to know..." Data's voice choked off in a cry as Geordi swept his thumb over the sensitive tip of the android's cock. "Yes, more, good..." Data pressed his forehead into the crook of Geordi's shoulder as the waves of pleasure crashed over him, smothering and dragging him down into that glorious sensation of warm skin and firm hands and the smell that was all _Geordi_ and he gasped his lover's name over and over as he came in shuddering spurts, his stomach contracting and his legs trembling as he pressed his face into the man's neck.

"Geordi, Geordi, Geordi..."

"It's okay, I'm here. You okay?"

"Yes, yes, good, very." He couldn't stop shaking, and he didn't know why, but he knew that Geordi would be wanting. He connected their mouths again, slipping his hand round the man's hardness and feeling him gasp into his mouth. So good, to delight him like this, so sweet to be pleasured and to please in return. He pushed Geordi back onto the bed and kissed down his torso, eliciting groans with tongue and teeth until he reached his lover's desire and took it into his mouth and it was _Geordi_, the taste and the smell of his musk and every dimension and measurement that mattered, and he ran his hands up the man's body and swallowed his straining cock into his throat.

"Data..." Geordi gave a strangled gasp and he knew it was a warning, but this was _Geordi_ and it was Geordi right up until his fingers knotted in Data's hair and his ejaculate hit the back of his throat and _suddenly the bony plates in that bizarre organ were rasping against his throat as Toff shoved the android's head onto his crotch. Data's nose smacked into the pelvic bone and he retched_ and leapt off the bed, dragging the sheet with him to cover his shameful nakedness and stumbling into the bathroom to hack the semen into the sink, and stand on trembling legs and watch it slide down the plughole. He retched again, drank water from the faucet and heaved it straight into the sink, purging himself of the last vestiges of the alien fluids contaminating his internal system.

"Hey." He saw Geordi in the mirror, behind him. Shuddering, Data pulled the sheet tighter around himself.

"I am so sorry." He whispered.

"It's okay, you don't have to be sorry, I'm not upset." Geordi had put his visor back on, and was regarding the android with concern. "Can I help?"

"No. I will be all right."

"Do you want me to leave?"

"Please stay, if you can."

"Of course, if that's what you want. You ready to come to bed?"

"In a moment."

"Okay." Geordi left him staring at himself in the mirror.


	17. Chapter 17

Khanda; The Blade of Wisdom, Cutting through Ignorance

Chapter One; Depositio

_Depositio. Noun. 1. Testimony. 2. Lowering of voice. 3. Degradation._

* * *

The allegations were serious enough that Starfleet decreed that the trial be held on Earth, in the courtroom attached to headquarters. They had judge, jury, and high security holding cells. The _Enterprise_ was recalled to the Alpha Quadrant summarily, and was soon in orbit around the homeworld. They had to shuttle down to headquarters, the building too heavily shielded to allow transporting either in our out as a security measure. Two shuttles left the _Enterprise_, one holding a security detail and the accused, and one with the android Second Officer, Commander Riker, Commander La Forge, Counselor Troi, and CMO Crusher. As Captain, Picard had volunteered himself to act as defence but Data, stricken with horror at the thought of his Captain learning the details of his assault, turned him down in favour of Riker. At least the First Officer had seen his pitiable state, was at least tangentially aware of what had happened. In an uncomfortable meeting he had outlined the events to Riker, a half hour that ended with neither able to meet the other's eyes.

The shuttle journey to the surface was a sombre one. There was little conversation, each person absorbed with their own thoughts, and in Troi's case, burdened with the oppressive atmosphere of negative emotions. Data's fingers twined and tangled in his lap, his jaw flexing rhythmically.

Upon arrival they were assigned rooms, and told to prepare their notes. There were few formalities here, military precision reigned, and the trial was due to begin in two hours. With little else to do, the group headed for the lounge and sat quietly, discussing sotto voiced.

Geordi could see that Data's breathing was more rapid than normal, his internal temperature higher than average. A sure sign that the android was under considerable strain. He reached out and put his hand on Data's shoulder. Data flinched, then shook his head with a sigh. Geordi removed his hand.

* * *

They were called through to the courtroom and shown to their seats, opposite the accused and his lawyer. Fajo had called in an old friend of his, another Zibalian, and the two looked smug. Troi scowled as she sat. One hardly needed to be an empath to tell how those two were feeling, it was written on their tattooed faces. She took the seat closest to Data, Riker on his other side, flanking him like guards.

The judge called them to order, and Riker stepped up to read the charges. Kidnapping, unlawful imprisonment, actual bodily harm, rape... the list was long and disturbing. Fajo's lawyer stepped forward and renounced the claims as fiction, on the simple grounds that it was impossible to harm a machine, and that the charges should be mitigated to theft and property damage. The jury murmured amongst themselves, but quietened swiftly as Riker called Data to the stand.

"Will you tell us all, please, what happened? We know this is going to be difficult for you, so take your time."

Data took a deep breath before looking up at the judge and jury.

"Your honour, I would like to begin with a brief explanation of a part of my positronic brain. As this case is in many ways unique, I will attempt to explain the various key aspects of my programming and physiology which have a direct bearing on the nature of the events, and the effects thereof, as and when they occur in the testimony. However, to begin, I have recently acquired and installed a chip which enables me to feel human emotion. As a result of recent events, our Chief Engineer and I have altered my neural pathways to provide me with a means of activating and deactivating the emotion chip on demand. I would like, first, to turn the chip off, in order to provide you with a factually correct account of all that occurred while I was in Kivas Fajo's captivity. Once that part of my testimony is complete, I shall activate the chip in order to provide you with a description of how these events have affected me emotionally. With your permission, sir?"

The judge looked slightly stunned. "Go ahead."

Data's head twitched to the side and almost immediately his face flattened into an impassive mask. He straightened his back and squared his shoulders.

* * *

He spoke frankly and bluntly about the beatings, his inability to move or defend himself. He described Fajo's self-pleasuring and delight at the discovery of a homosexual relationship, and the abuse he meted out when his requests were denied. He spoke candidly of his decision to acquiesce to the Zibalian's demands in order to avoid further damage, to attempt to remain able to escape should the opportunity arise. The description of the oral sex act he performed on Fajo in return for repair was equally blunt and technical, and he made it clear to the jury that he was under duress at the time. The description of the hours of isolation and immobility was, perforce, short. He described Palor Toff and his lust for 'pretty things', the refusal to reveal the identity of his lover and the subsequent beating. He described the breakdown of his mental faculties as a response to the overwhelming conflict between his subroutines, and the rape perpetrated on him as his mind broke. He gave explicit detail of the alien's sex and calmly detailed the rough treatment that damaged him internally, causing a shutdown. His blank gaze swept the jury as he described coming online lying on the floor, battered and terrified, and being forced to crawl to his tormentors because he was too weak to walk. His impassive face never twitched as he told them how Toff had abused his mouth, how he was forced to bite him to get free, how Toff had attempted to joint his arm from his shoulder.

* * *

"They immobilized me again before they left, and I realised that I had run out of options. I opted to activate the transmitter again, as I was reasonably certain that I would not survive another beating in any case. When the transmission was again picked up on the scanners of the Jovis, Fajo whipped me again, flaying my back, cutting my face and removing part of my ear. The Enterprise had also found the signal and luckily they were able to beam aboard the Jovis and rescue me, taking Kivas Fajo into custody."

There was a long pause at the end of his testimony, where Data looked impassively across the courtroom at the Zibalians. The judge shook his head a little.

Riker stepped forward again. "Data, would you move on to the second part of your testimony, please?" His bearded face was drawn and pale. He didn't want to ask this of his friend, but the necessity of it was obvious. If Fajo's case hinged on convincing the jury that the android had no feelings, they would have to prove otherwise.

"Of course, sir." Data's head twitched as he activated the emotion chip. The change in his body language was immediate and dramatic as his head drooped and his shoulders curved, as if his whole body was curling in on itself. He drew a shuddering breath through clenched teeth and stared down at his hands for a moment to try and compose himself.

"Can you explain to the court, please, how the events that you described have affected you?" Riker's voice was gruff, sterner than he had intended in an attempt to hide his own emotions.

"Of course." Data raised a trembling hand and ran it across his face. Across the courtroom Fajo snorted derisively.

"I have never before been treated with such barbarity. I have been unable to resume my duties as a Starfleet officer, and I find little joy in my spare time. I suffer from nightmares and flashbacks, which are adversely affecting my personal life. I am anxious and depressed, and have considered the equivalent of suicide as an escape from the negative consequences of being unable to forget the torment I suffered at this man's hands, and those of his co-conspirator."

"Thank you, Commander. No further questions." Riker nodded brusquely to the judge and took his seat. Fajo's lawyer bustled over to stare at the android, and Data clenched his jaw.

"There are some aspects of your testimony that I require clarification on, if you will." The lawyer clasped his hands and stared at Data. "You have been involved in a homosexual relationship, correct?"

"Yes."

"And this relationship, it's sexual? You're intimate with each other?"

"... Yes." Data looked down at his hands, clasped tight before him.

"So you find pleasure with this man? In having sex?"

"I... yes. I do not under..."

"Is this a function of the emotion chip?"

"That is correct."

"Where did the chip come from?" The lawyer had picked up a PADD, was perusing some notes.

"From my father, Doctor Noonian..."

"Sorry, your what?"

Data's eyes flicked from side to side in agitation. "He asked me to refer to him as father. Doctor Noonian Soong, my creator."

"But, you are a machine. You share no genetic material with the man, because you are not biological, yes?"

"Uh... Yes." Data stammered.

"So Soong made you, and then he made the chip, correct?"

"Yes."

"Tell me about your sexual behaviour programming."

The jury murmured. Data grimaced and knotted his fingers. "I am programmed with a series of subroutines that govern my sexuality, including a... a database of, of positions and..."

"Are there any limitations on this set of subroutines? Specific instances when they will refuse to 'switch on'?"

"Yes." Data whispered.

"I see." The lawyer put down the PADD. "You claim that the sexual contact between you and my client was non-consensual, but you also said that you became aroused. Was that arousal due to the activation of the sexual behaviour subroutines?"

Data swallowed. "Yes, but..."

"So the implication is that this _was_ a circumstance where it was appropriate for the subroutine to activate, correct?"

"It... no, I... It did, but I was not..."

"So you enjoyed it? You were aroused?"

"No! I, I, I did not consent..."

"But surely if this is a situation not to your liking, you would not have been programmed to react the way you did? Is it possible that your programming allows you to be treated in such a manner?"

"No, no, no, I..."

"To me, it's perfectly simple. Either your programming allows for this, and you have no autonomy and are simply a machine, or on some level you enjoyed what was happening..."

"NO!"

"Objection!" Shouted Riker, leaping to his feet at the same time as the judge banged his gavel. The jury were muttering, casting sidelong glances at each other.

"That is enough. I cannot approve of this aggressive line of questioning." The judge barked at the Zibalian lawyer, who bowed his head contritely and murmured, "No more questions, your honour." as he moved back to sit next to Fajo. He murmured something in Fajo's ear and the trader smiled.

On the other side of the room Data was moving towards his own seat. He was trying to stop the spasmodic tremors that were shaking his limbs. He realised that he was breathing hard and his circulatory system was racing, and he closed his eyes for a moment to try and steady himself.

"I wouldn't want a broken toy anyway." Said Fajo. His voice wasn't loud, but he pitched it across the room.

Data's trembling legs gave way and he lurched forward, Riker darting sideways to grab him and prevent him from falling. The android retched reflexively and covered his mouth with one hand as Riker helped him into his seat. "Are you alright?" He asked, and Data shook his head. Riker looked at Troi, her face pale, and at Crusher, whose cheeks were flushed with anger.

"I request a recess." He said to the judge, who nodded acquiescence.

"Fifteen minutes." The judge banged his gavel.


	18. Chapter 18

Chapter Two; Contestatio

_Contestatio. Noun. 1. Proving by witnesses. 2. Conclusive proof. 3. Earnest entreaty._

* * *

"Are you coming with us?" Troi said, resting her hand on Data's shoulder. He shook his head. "All right. Can I get you anything?" He shook his head again, and she rubbed his back briefly before moving to join the others, heading for the lounge.

He rested his head in his hands. His abuse by his captors was foul, and the shame he felt at having to relive his torment was almost overwhelming. But, his part was done. Now, it fell to his colleagues, his friends, to back up his testimony with their own statements and evidence.

He flinched as he felt a hand on his back, even as the sensory data informed him that it was a known pressure pattern. Geordi lifted his hand swiftly, and Data sat up, although he did not raise his eyes.

"I bought you some tea. I know you said you didn't want anything, but..." Geordi moved the mug into Data's peripheral field of vision, and he reached up and took it with a murmured word of thanks.

As Geordi took the seat next to him, Data sipped the tea. It was made the way he liked it, and the simple gesture from his lover was enough to make him want to weep, when all else about the day had been horror. Geordi tentatively put a hand on Data's shoulder, and he reached up and covered the dark skinned fingers with his own slender white-gold digits.

"I could not tell you." He said simply.

"I know. I understand." Geordi gripped his shoulder, and then released it to stand and relinquish the chair to Riker. Deanna took her seat on his other side, and took the android's hand in hers.

* * *

The first witness called to the stand was CMO Crusher. She spoke to the jury about the injuries the android had sustained, the genetic material she had found. She showed them the scans, explained how she believed his injuries were caused. She was pale but composed, her language technical and detailed. The cross examination from Fajo's lawyer was, again, aggressive and personal.

"Have you ever been called upon to treat the android before?"

"Yes, on occasion."

"But rarely for anything physical, right? When you've provided medical care for the android in the past, it's been chemical or psychological, yes?"

"That would be a fair assessment, yes."

"Has the emotion chip changed his behaviour?"

Crusher laughed lightly. "I should say so! It's like night and day."

"The change has been dramatic?"

"Of course."

"Do you think that having the chip has made him unstable?"

Crusher frowned. "He has bad days and good days, just like anyone else."

"I see." The lawyer referred to his notes again. "There has only ever been one other android with this level of emotional awareness, and that was Lore, is that correct?"

"... Yes." Crusher was scowling now.

"This would be the same Lore that destroyed an entire colony, attempted to destroy the Enterprise, and kidnapped and tortured your friends, correct?"

"Yes. What are you insinuating?"

"Lore held your son hostage at one point, is that true?"

"Data would never behave like that!" Two high pints of colour had risen on Crusher's cheeks, and she glared at the lawyer balefully.

"I never said that he would. But you did say that having the chip has made him unstable, would you also describe Lore as unstable?"

"Lore was a completely different person!"

"And yet the Lieutenant Commander refers to him as brother. They are identical, aren't they?"

"Only to look at, but their minds couldn't be more different." She was calming herself, trying to quell her anger.

"Of course." He looked at the PADD. "Lore had position of the emotion chip for a time, and used it to control Data. Do you think he altered the chip, tampered with it?"

"No, the circuitry was..."

"So you think Data's irrationality is innate?"

"He is _not_ irrational!" She snapped. The lawyer's eyebrows rose, and he turned to the jury and murmured; "Guess it's true what they say about redheads." Someone chuckled, quickly stifled as the scowling judge banged his gavel for order, and the lawyer muttered, "No further questions." on his way back to his seat.

* * *

Geordi was next to give evidence. He spoke of the devastating changes in Data's positronic brain caused by the conflict between his subroutines. He told the court about the physical injuries the android had sustained, about the inhibiting device and instruments of pain recovered from the _Jovis._ He was nervous but determined. He had never been one for public speaking, and to be doing so in such a circumstance was particularly stressful. But he steeled himself thinking of Data, everything he had been through, was still going through. Talking to the court was nothing compared with what his lover had endured, and if it would help to convict the one responsible, then he could put up with a little embarrassment.

"Thank you Commander, that was very interesting." The lawyer consulted his PADD. "How long would you say you've known Commander Data?"

"Uh... a while, I guess, more than a decade."

"Mmmhm. And when did your relationship become sexual?"

Geordi froze, his mouth hanging open. It felt as though someone had just dragged an icicle down his spine. Vaguely he could hear the muttering in the courtroom, but it was as if is head was full of static. He could almost feel the glances being exchanged by his friends.

And now he had a choice. He could lie, deny everything. He could. The option was there.

"About a month ago."

The lawyer looked disappointed, as if Geordi had somehow cheated him by answering honestly.

"The android claims that his mental breakdown was due in part to his revealing the secret of your relationship. Why did you feel it necessary to conceal the fact that you were romantically linked?"

"I... I didn't see that it was anybody's business but our own."

"Yet you swore him to secrecy. That seems a little extreme."

"Yeah, well... I value my privacy."

"Is it not more likely that you were unwilling to admit that you were sexually attracted to a machine? That you felt ashamed because of..."

"Now hold on!" Geordi interrupted. "I have _never_ seen Data as just a machine, he's a person, even if he _is_ mechanical. He's smart, and funny and kind, and, and if I was ashamed it wasn't because of him, it was because of me, that I was into men, and I've spent so long hiding it and pretending, and then he made me feel like it was okay, that I was normal. But, but, I felt like I was the problem, like there was something wrong with me, and I guess it's my hang-up, and I should never have taken it out on him, so yeah, it is my fault. But to be ashamed because of who, or what, Data is? No, no way."

The Zibalian lawyer glared at him for a moment before stalking back to his seat. Geordi turned to go back to his own and realised he was trembling. The adrenalin was racing through him, the shock of the impact of his statements just hitting home. He stumbled back to his chair and slumped into it, removing his visor to press his fingers to his temples.

Counselor Troi gripped his arm and then stood, taking her turn to give evidence. Geordi couldn't hear a word, it felt like he had been punched in the gut. He clutched his visor, unwilling to see Riker's smirk or Crusher's shock, the dark looks of the jury, or, worst of all, the wounded face of his lover. They all knew, and soon everyone would know. And then the jokes would start, the stares and jeers, the sneering and snide comments. And he hadn't even told them himself. He hadn't had to tell them to their faces. It had been done for him.

With a jolt he realised that he was smiling.

* * *

"Finally!" Fajo was getting what he wanted, an audience. Never so happy as when he was performing, his personality and flair came to the fore as he defended himself, never once admitting to having done anything wrong, simply claiming that as Data was a machine that it was impossible to harm him and insisting that the only reason he was eager to discover what experience the android had with men was in order to entertain him and provide him with pleasure.

"I certainly didn't expect to be dragged into a cell and hauled in front of a jury for having a bit of fun. And he enjoyed what we did, don't worry, we didn't leave him unattended to, and the look on his face was beautiful, I swear, he loved every second..."

"That is a lie!" Data was on his feet, Riker had one hand on his chest trying to push him back into his seat. The judge banged his gavel, but Data simply turned up the volume on his vocal synthesiser.

"I had hoped that I would be able to convince the court of the wrongdoing of this man through testimony alone, but if you require further evidence I am willing to provide it!"

"You speak out of turn, sir!" The judge snapped.

"No, let him speak!" Fajo's lawyer was on his feet as well. "What evidence?"

"My own memories."

The lawyer snorted. "We've heard what you claim to remember, but you yourself have said that you were unable to think clearly! You are an unreliable witness!"

"I have a full audio and visual recording of every moment of my life, with the ability to be recalled and played back with perfect clarity."

"They are still subjective..." The lawyer snarled as Data shook his head. He was still on his feet but Riker had stepped aside.

"No. My recall is perfect. I cannot remember falsely, nor can I invent fake memories."

"Then you can tamper with them, alter them..." The lawyer grasped at the crumb.

"What I see and hear are recorded accurately and stored in my memory banks in a read-only form. They cannot be altered, only recalled."

"This is preposterous, your honour. There is no way that a viewing of such a thing would tell us anything we don't already know."

"Then your client will not mind if I play back a recording of a conversation. Perhaps it will jog his memory." Data opened his mouth and bypassed the subroutine governing his facial mimicry of language to allow Fajo's voice to come through his throat. _"Do you want to be penetrated?"_ _"Not by you."_ Came Data's voice, and then the sound of rapid footsteps and a solid impact, something hard hitting something that yielded, the sound of a whimper and more blows, and a high keening wail. _"Do. As. You're. Told. Data! Play. The. Game!"_ Fajo's voice shouted through Data's mouth and the judge slammed his gavel as the jury began talking and all dissolved to chaos.

"Enough! Clear the room! Let me speak to the jury, get everyone else out!" The judge shouted, and the Starfleet officers didn't need telling twice.

* * *

"So now we just wait for a verdict?" Geordi looked at his friends. Riker nodded.

"Yup, they'll call us back in to hear it, but you don't have to go back in there if you don't want to." He looked at Data as he said this last, his bearded face lined with care. The android shook his head.

"I would like to see this through and hear the verdict, whichever way it falls. But thank you for your concern."

"I'll be glad when this is over." Crusher shuddered, sipping a coffee. "I don't think I can stand to look at that odious little man for much longer." She looked over the rim of the cup at Data. "You were very brave."

"Bravery had nothing to do with it. Merely a desire to see justice done."

"Oh! Now he knows false modesty!" Troi smiled and took the android's arm. "You can't fool me, you have every right to be proud of yourself, because we're all proud of you."

"The jury have reached a verdict." Called one of the security team.


	19. Chapter 19

Chapter Three; Absolutio

_Absolutio. Noun. 1. Free from obligations. 2. Completeness. 3. Finishing. 4. Perfection._

* * *

"I had hoped to feel better. I thought that seeing justice done and the criminal convicted would give me a sense of... closure."

"Well, I hope it brings you some satisfaction, at least, knowing that it was worth it. He'll be shipped off to a penal colony, and tomorrow you can go back to your old life."

Data looked broodingly into his glass. He and Geordi had sat a little way from the others, who were chatting amiably about nothing in particular, released from the tension of the trial.

"Satisfaction. Yes, of a sort. But I suppose I had hoped that it would help me to... become me, again."

"You _are_ you. Always have been, always will be."

Data sighed heavily. "And now I have ended up ruining what we had."

Geordi cocked his head, his brow furrowed. "What do you mean?"

Data rubbed the rim of his glass with his thumb. "Because I asked you to testify on my behalf, our relationship is now known. I am sorry, and I will understand completely if you wish for us to cease romantic contact."

"Wait... wait, hold on..." Geordi put a hand up, forestalling further comment. "You think that because people know about us, that I would want to stop seeing you?" He barked a laugh. "That's crazy. In fact, you couldn't be more wrong."

Data frowned deeply, looked askance at the engineer. "Explain."

"Well..." Geordi leaned back in his chair and rubbed the back of his neck. "Before, I was so worried about people finding out, 'cause I didn't want anyone to know that I was, y'know, attracted to men. But now they know, our friends I mean, and you know what? They haven't said a word. Not even Riker! I thought they'd be teasing, or maybe even that they'd hate me, but... they don't mind, because it doesn't matter. I, I don't mean..." He leant forward, brushing away his statement with swift chops of his hand. "I don't mean that _we_ don't matter, that _you_ don't matter, I just mean that the fact that we're both, y'know, men, _that's_ the part that doesn't matter."

Data shook his head. "I am still not grasping your meaning."

"Look, it's just... I was worried about telling people, and now I don't have to, and it's like a weight off my mind. And now that they know..." He reached out and took Data's hand. "I don't care if _everyone_ knows. Because I... I care about you, and I want you to be happy, you deserve it. Because you're sweet, and funny, and clever, and you're kind and sexy..."

Data's lips stole whatever words he had left, and the remaining air in his lungs. He reached for the android's uniformed shoulder and held on like a drowning man as Data's fingers walked across his back. Somehow everything else melted away as their tongues entwined and the world ceased to exist outside of the warm insistence of his lover's passionate embrace. Data's kiss was assertive, and left Geordi in no doubt of his intentions. He nearly tumbled forward out of his chair as Data drew back, separating their mouths. The android took the glass from Geordi's numb fingers and put both of their drinks aside, before taking both of Geordi's hands in his.

"Upstairs. Now." The android's golden eyes were glowing as he drew Geordi to his feet.

"We... we should tell the others..."

"Get a room!" Shouted Riker.

"That was my intention, yes." Breathed Data in reply, drawing Geordi towards the turbolift.

* * *

The doors opened and Data pushed Geordi into the lift, pressing him against the wall and sealing his mouth onto the man's throat, biting and kissing the place where his hot blood ran close to the surface, feeling the pulse of it on his lips. Geordi gasped, his hands gripping the back of Data's jacket as the android pushed his thigh into his crotch, coaxing him to arousal. Their lips met again, fervent and desperate, and the doors opened onto the corridor leading to their rooms.

"My room is closer." Gasped Geordi, and they tumbled through the door, shedding clothes and bumping noses and teeth as their hands and lips fumbled.

Data gripped the front of Geordi's undershirt and tore it from his body, bending his head to bite the man's shoulder as he ground himself insistently against his lover. Geordi groaned, wrestling with the fastening of Data's trousers and trying to wriggle out of his own as Data slid his hands under the waistband and cupped the man's buttocks, pressing their bodies together, urging further contact.

"Stop! Wait, hang on..." Geordi put his hands to Data's chest, pushed him back a pace. He could see that Data had that glorious glow, and he felt the answering heat in his own body, centred urgently on his sex. He breathed deeply for a moment, holding Data at arm's length. He could feel the android trembling.

"Just... wait. I... are you sure? I mean, today, now? You okay?" _Please say yes_ Geordi thought, in the closest thing to a prayer that had ever gone through his mind.

"I..." Data was shaking, his hands on Geordi's shoulders trembling, the nails digging into the soft flesh. "Yes, with you, yes. I... I want to have something... good..." His eyes flicked left, right, left, right, accessing... "What I want now... is gentleness. And, joy. And love."

"Okay. But, just, let's... let's slow down, okay?" _Because if you don't stop being so good at what you do, it'll be over in about twenty seconds._

Data closed his eyes, nodded twice in accent. Slowly he ran his hands down Geordi's arms to take his hands and lead him to the bed.

He pulled Geordi down on top of him, their chests in searing contact as his sensors registered every glorious millimetre of the man's skin, each tickling hair. He put his hand to the back of the engineer's neck and pulled him into a kiss, gentle but insistent. Geordi shifted his body over until he was alongside and Data turned to face him, pressing himself close. He felt Geordi's fingers trail down his back and he trembled, the delicate touch awakening his skin into shivering tremors. He arched his body into his lover's as Geordi's hand reached his hip, skimming down his still-uniformed thigh and then in, brushing close, so close, to the seat of his lust. He closed his eyes and gasped as Geordi raked his nails up his flank, sending shimmering waves of pleasure/pain surging through him.

"Stop." He gasped. He wriggled away from Geordi, but only to put enough space between them that he could divest himself of his remaining clothing. Geordi groaned in appreciation at the sight of the expanse of glittering skin laid out before him and dragged his own trousers off, kicking his socks and boxers off the side of the bed. He looked at his lover, clearly wanting, his lust evident. Data's golden eyes were roving up and down Geordi's body, drinking in the sight of his nakedness, his proud sex standing ready.

"I want you inside me." Data slid closer, wrapped his arms around Geordi, pillowing the man's head on his solid bicep.

"One step at a time." Geordi was breathing hard, sweat beading on him already. "Do you need lube?"

"Touch me, now." Data crooked his knee and put his foot flat to the mattress. He took Geordi's hand and guided it past his cock. Geordi ran his fingers between the android's buttocks, feeling the puckered opening, so like a human's. Data hissed between his teeth.

"In, please. Inside."

Geordi pressed his finger to the tight hole. Tentatively he pushed in past the ring of hard synthetic muscle, and was astonished to find his finger sliding in up to the second knuckle.

"Oh... Oh fuck, you're wet?" He gasped, half delighted, half shocked.

The android didn't reply, except to reach down and grip the man's erection in one firm pale hand. Geordi gasped and pressed his finger in as far as it would go.

"More, two, now, Geordi." Data gasped. Geordi pulled his finger out and pushed in his index and middle, easier now with the lubricant slicking them. Data gritted his teeth and rocked his hips.

"Move." He growled, and Geordi obliged, sliding in and out of the slick opening, and Data matched the rhythm with his hand.

"I need..." The android pressed his forehead to the man's. "You need to open me. Stretch..." He broke off in a hoarse cry as Geordi bent his fingers inside him and touched something.

"Whoa! You okay?" Geordi made to pull away, and Data grabbed his wrist, pressing the man's fingers into himself.

"Again! Geordi, bend... f...f..." He craned his head back as Geordi complied, crooked his fingers in a beckoning movement, stroking the sensor bank inside his anal cavity. Data's hand found Geordi's cock again, setting the pace now, demanding.

"What is that?" Geordi was fascinated. He had never seen the android this way, almost wild with abandon as he rocked himself on his lover's hand.

"I... I believe it is a cluster of sensors intended to approximate the human pr..." His voice disappeared into a cry as his lover moved inside him again. His pale fingers tightened around the man's hardness, his pace relentless, and Geordi felt a rush of pleasure threatening to engulf him.

"Oh God..." Geordi gasped "Stop, stop..." Data's hand ceased its movement. "Stop, let... let go..." He gritted his teeth as the android complied. "I... I don't want to come yet..."

"I... I do..." Data rocked his hips, driving Geordi's fingers into himself.

"Oh God..." Geordi moaned again, biting his lip. "No, you gotta stop." He pulled his fingers out and drew away a little, the shock of the cool sheets welcome against his heated skin. He was gasping, and achingly close, sweat beading his body. He looked across at Data, who was regarding him with lust filled eyes. The look alone was almost enough, and he put his knuckles to his mouth and bit down, hoping the shock of pain would give him a few more minutes.

"You do not wish to experience orgasm?" Data quirked his head.

"Nuhh... Not yet." Geordi breathed, regarding the dents in his skin left by his teeth.

"Why not? Is that not the point of intercourse?"

"Well, yeah, but... there's two reasons, really. The first is, when a human male has an orgasm, it usually takes a while before he can perform again, so it would be a shame to come too soon, and spoil the evening." He drew in a deep breath and sighed it out. "The second reason is, well, it's usually better if you wait for it. The anticipation, y'know?"

"I am familiar with anticipation." The android reached for him, and with a fraction of his phenomenal strength, lifted the man bodily to lay him down on top of his pale nakedness, face to face, chest to chest, and cock to aching cock. "I am also familiar with impatience."

"Geez..." Geordi could protest no further as Data's mouth found his, soft lips working against his mouth with delightful intensity. He moaned into the android's mouth as Data slid his tongue over his, teasing and tangling, until the android let his head fall back onto the pillow to look up at his human lover. Data reached up and gently removed Geordi's visor, putting it on the table next to his combadge. The android mused for a moment on the fact that, even in the giddy heat of passion, he had taken his combadge off his jacket and placed it within reach, and he smiled a little at his own quirk and then forgot everything as Geordi gripped his neck with his teeth. Data bucked his hips and gasped.

"A moment." Data untangled his legs from Geordi's, tucking his knees up either side of Geordi's ribcage and tilting his pelvis, rubbing Geordi's hardness through the cleft in his ass.

"Are you sure? Is this what you want?" Geordi gasped, the slickness from the android's opening smearing itself along his hard length as he slid again across the tight hole.

"Geordi..." Data's voice was almost a whine. "In me, you, now, I want you inside me..."

Data backed up his statement by reaching down to guide Geordi's hardness to the opening, pressing the tip of his cock against that tight ring.

"Slowly." He breathed as Geordi breached him. He gasped as the man inched himself inside with slow small thrusts, drawing back a little and then each time pressing in a bit further. Geordi groaned as the tightness gripped him, dipped his head to rest on Data's shoulder as he pressed himself into his lover. Data clawed his back, his nails dragging lines into the man's skin and making him hiss through his teeth. He tilted his pelvis again, rocking the man's hardness deeper inside himself, and suddenly there was that incredible burst of sensory information as the tip of Geordi's cock slid across the pseudo-prostate, and he grabbed the man's hips and bucked himself onto his hardness.

"Stop! Wait!" Geordi breathed into the android's ear. Buried in that welcoming warmness, he took a few deep breaths, focusing on steadying his breathing. Data whined slightly and shifted his hips, and Geordi shook his head.

"Wait. Or... Or I'm not gonna last." Geordi relaxed down onto Data's body to rest his forehead against the android's. Data ran his nose along Geordi's cheek and kissed his lips lightly, plucking at the plump soft skin. He had waited for this, this moment of oneness, and Geordi was right, he knew, right to wait and treasure it. He closed his eyes, revelling in the weight of his lover's body on his, the feeling of fullness, the ache of his own hardness between their bodies. He ran one of his feet up Geordi's thigh and moved his hands up the man's back, caressing the warm skin, causing the hairs to rise with the passing of his fingers. He smiled to himself and brought their mouths together again, crossing his feet behind his lover's back and tilting his hips in invitation.

Geordi groaned into his mouth. This was exquisite. The tightness, the heat of it, and the strength beneath that smooth supple skin. He pushed himself in, rocking his pelvis into his lover. Now it was Data's turn to moan as he was penetrated ever more deeply, and he uncrossed his feet and let his legs go limp to allow himself to be opened. His tongue flicked into Geordi's mouth and he clutched the man's back, urging him on. If he tilted himself just so... There! He broke the kiss with a gasp as the head of Geordi's cock raked that spot inside that seemed to exist only for this, this extraordinary explosion of sensation.

"Again!" He gasped, and Geordi was only too eager to comply, sliding himself along and into his lover, digging his toes into the sheets. Data's fingers pressed into his sweat-slicked back as the android arched himself into the man's body, crying his ecstasy to the ceiling, his golden eyes open in wonder. This, this was what he had waited for, this feeling of completeness. To be held like this, to give himself so totally, to surrender willingly, and nothing could compare. He would remember this, now, remember the joy and gentleness, and no-one else would, or could, touch him like this again.

"Geordi, Geordi..." He gasped, grasping his lover's hips and pulling. "Faster, now, please, please!" Geordi drew a shuddering breath that came out as a moan as Data writhed under him. "Data, I... I'm gonna..."

"Yes!" Data pressed their bodies together, driving Geordi to hit that spot again, bringing him closer to the peak of his ecstasy, that glorious hot sunburst feeling that all of his sensors were activating at once. His cock throbbed, trapped between their bodies, and he slid one hand between the man and himself to grip his hot lust. He shouted and bucked his hips again, and Geordi shouted with him and the tip of the man's cock hit that spot again and it was so good, _so good_ and all he could do was say his lover's name again and again as hot fluid spilled over his hand and stomach as he was lifted up on the wave of sensory information and pure sunlit pleasure until he crashed down the other side into nothing.

"Oh fuck, oh fuck..." Geordi gasped as he let his weight fall onto the android's now motionless chest. He pressed his face into the crook of Data's shoulder for a moment, lost in the sweeping tingling sensation of the afterglow. Beneath him Data trembled and drew a huge breath as he relaxed, his hands falling away to the sides as he came to from his shut-down.

"Hey. You okay?" Geordi murmured. He felt Data nod and heard him say something that sounded a bit like 'Yahrgh.' Geordi gave a breathy chuckle and slowly drew himself out of his lover, and Data hissed a little at the feeling of emptiness.

"Damn. I had no idea it would feel... That was... amazing." Geordi rolled off the android to flop back into the cool sheets, sending a shiver of goose bumps walking up his skin.

"Yah."

"You... you okay?" Geordi's questing fingers found his visor, and he clicked it on to look at Data, lying prone next to him. Data's gaze seemed to be fixed on something a thousand miles away straight up, and his mouth was hanging open. He blinked twice.

"Yes." The android turned his head and slowly focused his golden eyes on the dark skinned man sharing the bed with him. Geordi's breathing was slowing, his skin shining with sweat, and there was a shimmer of Data's lubricant smeared on his stomach.

A slow smile spread across the android's face, and he began to laugh.

"What's so funny?" Geordi asked, his own face creasing into a grin.

"Nothing. Everything." Data breathed, and reached out to draw the man into an embrace. "Simply the joy of the moment. I love you."

"I love you too."


	20. Chapter 20

Chapter Four; Iracundia

_Iracundia. Noun. 1. Anger. 2. Resentment. 3. Passion._

* * *

Data had noticed that as their relationship had intensified, new subroutines were activating, governing his behaviour in strange ways. The subroutine he was fighting at that moment was the one trying to force-activate his dream program in response to the post-coital bed sharing. He was propped on one elbow, watching the man next to him. He had lain still until Geordi had fallen asleep, and was waiting now for him to slip into a deep-sleep state.

He watched him closely, monitoring eye movement, breathing patterns and skin temperature, until he was sure that Geordi was sleeping deeply. Then he carefully left the bed and dressed himself in silence and crept from the room. He checked his internal chronometer as he made his way to the turbolift, and was pleased to discover that he still had ten minutes.

He arrived in the lobby, nodded to the security guard and made his way to the holding cells.

"Leave us." He said to the guard, who quirked his head in acknowledgement and went, the door hushing closed behind him. Data's voice had been low, but apparently it was loud enough to wake the Zibalian, who sat up in his bunk and rubbed his eyes as he focused blearily on the android.

"So," Fajo sneered, "this time you _are_ here to gloat?"

"No." Data walked over to the cell, regarding the prisoner dispassionately. He reached out and deactivated the force field, and moved inside the cell to stand in front of the Zibalian. Fajo's face fell, his eyes darted from side to side anxiously.

"Now, now hang on, Data, you can't just..."

"I assure you I take no pleasure in this." The android murmured before wrapping one slender white hand around Fajo's throat and lifting him bodily from the bunk. Fajo squeaked and grabbed at Data's forearm, nails scrabbling futilely at his sleeve.

"I need the name of the person you were delivering me to."

Fajo gurgled in reply, and Data allowed his feet to touch the floor, releasing his hold enough to allow the Zibalian to breathe.

"I... I can't..." Fajo croaked. Data frowned and tightened his grip again. Fajo's eyes bulged as he panicked, kicking the android's legs as he was lifted again. Data's frown deepened and he held Fajo at arm's length to prevent his feet from connecting. The tattoo on the Zibalian's face stood out starkly against his reddening cheeks, and he grabbed at Data's forearm, trying to lift himself and relieve the pressure on his throat.

"The name, Fajo." Data rested the Zibalian's feet back on the floor and allowed him a breath.

"He... he'll kill me..." Fajo's voice creaked, his eyes wide with terror.

"You will be leaving here to go to a high security penal colony. There will be no opportunity for you to be murdered. The name, now."

Fajo managed a broken chuckle. "Oh, he'd find me, trust me. He scares the hell out of me."

"We will protect you. Tell me his name."

"Fuck you."

Data lifted Fajo again, and slammed his back against the wall of the cell. The android's lips were drawn back in a snarl, bearing his teeth, golden eyes fiery with his rage. He pressed his palm into the Zibalian's windpipe and was rewarded with a panicky gurgle of froth from Fajo's mouth.

"Data!"

Data released his grip so suddenly that Fajo crashed to the floor, his limp legs unable to support his weight. He scrambled back into a corner, clutching his throat and drawing in great ragged, wheezing breaths as the android calmly left the cell to greet Commander Riker.

"What the hell, Data?" Riker barked, his eyes wide and horrified.

"I apologise, sir, I must have gotten carried away." The android murmured, his face once more impassive. Riker turned to Fajo, looking down at him.

"K..Keep him away from me!" Fajo's voice rattled. Riker nodded and knelt by the Zibalian.

"Of course. I am so sorry, I promise that he will be dealt with."

"He should be dismantled," growled Fajo, "he's obviously dangerous."

"He will be dealt with." Riker repeated. "Now, I came down here to have a chat with you, find out a bit more about this person you're supposed to be passing Data on to. Can you help me?"

Fajo looked at Riker, wide-eyed. Then he began to laugh, the sound harsh in his raw throat.

"Oh, I get it, good cop, bad cop, right? Very good." He clapped his hands mockingly. "I honestly thought you Federation types would be smarter than that."

"You got me." Riker shrugged. "Although, I am surprised at how eager Data was to be the bad guy. Usually he's the nice one, but I guess there's something about you that brings out his violent side. Now, I've never seen him this angry, so it really is in your best interest to give us the name quickly."

"You can't frighten me." Fajo grinned his lop-sided grin. "You're not allowed to torture me."

"Yes, that's true." Riker seemed to consider this point. "However..." He stood. "The security team will attest to the fact that Data came in alone, and a lot can happen in a few minutes. Now, the good Lieutenant Commander here..." He gestured to the motionless android, "He's been on medical leave for a while, psychological problems you know. So, I figure, what happened is..." Riker rubbed his bearded chin thoughtfully. "He came down here, full of righteous anger, and took it out on the man who beat him, tortured him, and raped him. Then, I came in, but by then, he had already been working on you for a while, so..." Riker shrugged. Fajo goggled at him.

"You... You're not seriously saying that you'll... that he'd..."

Riker shrugged again. "Or you can just tell us."

"I... I can't. You won't let him..."

Data took two long strides towards Fajo, who threw up his hands in supplication.

"Wait wait wait!" Fajo wiped a trembling hand across his brow. "If I tell you, you promise you'll keep me safe?"

"Of course!" Riker seemed surprised that he would even ask. Fajo looked at the two figures towering over him and made his decision.

"Send the android out," Fajo tilted his chin at Data, before fixing his eyes on Riker, "and I'll tell you."

Riker turned and nodded at Data, who inclined his head in reply and strode from the room. Riker turned his attention back to the Zibalian, who was pushing himself up on trembling legs.

"Well?" Riker raised an eyebrow, and the Zibalian took a shaky breath.

* * *

Geordi came to slowly, luxuriating in the feeling of cool sheets and a warm body pressed against him. He hummed appreciatively and stretched, pressing himself back into the warmth behind him. He heard Data make a small nose in his throat, and then a strong arm wrapped his waist.

"Morning." Geordi murmured. "How you feeling today?"

In answer Data pressed a kiss to the nape of his neck and pulled their bodies together, and Geordi felt the android's arousal pressing against his buttock. He chuckled.

"Damn, you're like a teenager. Are you ever satisfied?"

Data's hand slid across his stomach, tickling and teasing, the fingers drifting through the curly hairs above his slowly awakening sex. He grabbed Data's hand and turned his head to find his mouth, the kiss gentle and tender, but promising. Geordi pulled away and laughed lightly.

"Okay, okay. But give me a minute, alright? I'll be right back."

Geordi found his visor and went into the bathroom. Data watched him walk, noting the play of muscles in his back and legs, bunching and shifting under the dark skin. Data sighed with anticipation as his hand found his sex. He knew well enough that he wouldn't be able to climax, but knowing that Geordi would return to him he felt free to indulge in his own pleasure. He rolled onto his back and bent his knees, reaching down with his other hand to stroke his opening. He closed his eyes as he penetrated himself, two fingers reaching and sliding, while his other hand slid up and down his erection. He gasped as he found that place inside himself. Not as intense as when Geordi did it, but pleasurable nonetheless. He added another finger, spreading himself, stretching the tight synthetic muscle in preparation. He groaned, clenching his jaw, pressing his fingers into himself as deep as they would go, writhing on his own hand.

"Wow." Geordi was standing in the doorway of the bathroom, watching with every sign of enjoyment as his lover pleasured himself.

"Geordi." Data moaned. Geordi shivered and came to join him on the bed, bringing himself to fullness and cupping his other hand behind the android's head to draw him into a deep kiss.

"I want you." Data said, gazing at his lover as their mouths parted.

"I want you, too." Geordi moved across the bed to kneel between the android's legs, and Data hooked one foot over his shoulder. Geordi quirked an eyebrow and Data nodded, removing his slick fingers from himself to smear lubricant over the man's hard shaft. Geordi sucked a breath between his teeth and leant over him, pushing the android's leg up and past his chest. He took his cock in his hand and pressed the tip to the opening, gasping as he almost immediately slid inside. Data gave a sharp moan and grabbed his ass, pulling him in.

"Oh God!" Geordi exclaimed as he slid in up to the hilt. The angle encouraged him in, deeper than the night before, and he had to slow himself.

"No, Geordi, I want more, I... I want..." Data looked unsure.

"Are you okay? What do you want?" Geordi paused, looking down into those golden eyes. Data fixed him with his gaze and took a breath.

"I want you to fuck me."

Geordi breathed a trembling laugh. "Okay. Yeah."

"Forgive me." Data frowned. "I have been told in the past that my attempts at 'talking dirty' have not precisely had the desired effect."

"No! No it's fine, it's just... I don't think I've heard you swear before. It's kinda hot."

"You like it?"

"Yeah... You know what, don't worry about me. You say whatever you want, you..." Geordi gave a breathy moan as Data shifted under him. "You make whatever noises you like. I want to hear you."

"Yesss..." The word became a drawn-out hiss between Data's clenched teeth as his lover moved, pulling out and pressing in, sliding across that delightful place inside that made his head fill with sparks. Geordi's movements became more determined as the android gave voice to his pleasure, gasping and moaning with abandon and clutching at his hips to encourage him.

"God, you're beautiful." Geordi moaned, watching the halo glow around his lover as his systems heated, the golden brightness pulsing with the waves of pleasure passing through them both.

"Yes, Geordi, please, fuck me, harder." Data's voice broke off into a wordless cry as his lover obliged, pushing himself up onto one hand and grabbing Data's raised leg to thrust himself deeper into him.

"Oh, yes. Data, fuck, I love this." Geordi growled. "I'm getting... I think..."

"Riker to Data."

Data gave a trembling cry of shock, and Geordi stopped still in surprise.

"Riker to Data, come in, please."

Data's head snapped sideways to the table by the bed, where his combadge was humming with the first officer's voice. He reached over, gasping as the movement sent shivers of pleasure rippling through him as he moved Geordi's cock inside himself. Geordi groaned and bit his lip as Data twisted to slap the combadge.

"... Data here."

"Hey, couldn't reach you at your room, shoulda figured you'd be up and about already."

"Yes... yes, up." Data knew his voice was strained. Geordi grinned wickedly and shifted, rotating his hips and making the android's eyes roll as he bit back a cry.

"Just gotta let you know that the shuttle departure's been moved up, we're leaving in twenty minutes. Everything okay?"

"Yes! Fine! Thank you, Data out!" Data batted the combadge again and then howled as Geordi thrust into him again, pressing him into the mattress with his body.

"Oh fuck, Geordi!" His fingers scrabbled at the man's back as he tilted his hips into his lover's movements, rocking them both together, urging him faster, deeper. "Please, please, I..."

"Riker to La Forge."

"Oh God..." Geordi moaned, trying to still himself. Data gave a desperate sobbing groan, and it was Geordi's turn to reach out, the other way this time, to the small com unit fitted to the side table.

"Yes! I'm here!" Geordi panted. Data was writhing under him, and he was finding it increasingly difficult to focus on anything other than the insistent thrums of pleasure that seemed to shake his whole body.

"Morning Geordi! Just letting you know that the shuttle..."

"Yep, twenty minutes, I heard you before." Geordi was trembling, stretched out ready to cut the com link. Data groaned and slapped one hand over his own mouth.

"Oh! Uh, how..."

"Not. Now. Will." Geordi growled and smacked the panel, breaking the link.

"Geordi, Geordi, Geordi." Data's eyes were wide, his mouth open, and Geordi could see that bright glow centred around the android's chest, waiting.

"Yes, yes, God..." Geordi hauled himself back over his lover's body, giving himself over to his instincts, driving the android into the mattress and thrusting himself into him with powerful strokes. Data screamed, his vocal synthesiser giving up on trying to make anything intelligible from the wild signals and instead emitting an electronic wail, and _that_ was Data's voice, not just Soong's recorded and played back, but a noise that only an android could make, only Data, and Geordi lost all control. He leant back, one hand on the android's shoulder and the other clutching his pale leg, and drove himself into him, fucking him into the bed and howling as the pressure inside him built to an almost painful intensity. Data shrieked again and suddenly the synthetic muscles gripped him, clutching his cock tightly as Data's back arched off the bed and he screamed a burst of static at the ceiling and a spurt of golden fluid erupted from his pale cock. Geordi shouted his own release, pressing himself into that tightness as his orgasm swept through him in a white-hot cascade of pure pleasure. He felt Data freeze under him, the tight heat of him wringing him of every shred of pleasure.

"Fuck... yes. God, that was..." Geordi allowed his trembling arms to lower him onto Data's body, and he lay there gasping for air as Data came back online with a gulp of breath and a shudder that ran through his whole body. The android wrapped his arms around his lover, holding him tight and close, unwilling to relinquish the contact. Geordi's breathing gradually slowed to something closer to normal as he allowed his body to relax, trusting Data's strong body to accept his weight. The android's chest was heaving under him.

"You okay?" He breathed into Data's ear.

"Nyuh. Yuh. Yeh." Data was panting, his chest hot against Geordi's body as his overtaxed system tried to keep up with the sensory information.

Geordi laughed softly. "Well, sounds like we've got places to be. I'll go take first shower while you recover. You gonna be okay?"

"Yarhs."

Geordi laughed again. "Well, let me go, then." He pressed his lips to Data's cheek and pushed himself up, peeling his body from his lover reluctantly. Data loosened his grip with a groan and lay staring at the ceiling as Geordi went to the bathroom. The world seemed to be receding, his senses numbed and dull after the sensory storm that has swept through him. His eyes closed in a slow blink, and then another.

"Data? You okay?"

Data's eyes shot open and he lurched into a sitting position. Geordi was regarding him from the end of the bed with his brow creased in concern.

"You said that you would take a shower." Data shook his head groggily. Geordi's frown deepened.

"I... I did. I'm done. Is something wrong?"

"... Yes." Data checked his internal chronometer, to discover an absence of input lasting eight minutes fifty three seconds. "It is the dream program. I did not activate it last night, and now..." His eyelids drooped again, and he shook himself reflexively. "... and now it is trying to force start in response to our recent coitus and my subsequent sexual release."

"Oh!" Geordi grabbed his clothes and started to dress. "Like the subroutine you were telling me about before, right? The... the bed-sharing thing?"

"Similar, yes, although..." Data's chin hit his chest and he snapped his head back with a start. "... This seems somewhat excessive under the circumstances..."

Geordi grinned. "So you came, and now you're sleepy? You're getting more human every day!"

"This could prove to be something of an inconvenience." Data grumbled as he stumbled into the bathroom to shower.

Five minutes later Geordi went in and woke him up again.

* * *

The others were already gathered in the lobby when they emerged from the turbolift, Geordi practically dragging Data behind him.

"Sorry, sorry, we're here." Geordi smiled apologetically.

"Not like Data to be late for anything." Riker raised an eyebrow. Geordi shook his head a little.

"Well, he's not exactly himself this morning..." Geordi jerked his head at the android, who was swaying slightly where he stood, staring off into the middle distance.

"What did you _do_ to him?" Said Riker, his bearded face creasing into a grin.

"Let's just get to the shuttle." Crusher rolled her eyes at them, already turning away.

On the short walk to the shuttle pad, Geordi explained as best he could, and without going into too much detail, how Data's programming was changing to incorporate new subroutines as a response to his emotional development and their strengthening relationship. Data was almost totally unable to contribute to the discussion, the dream program endeavouring to override everything else.

"Of course, we may need to make some programming adjustments for the long run, this is pretty impractical." Geordi was saying, when Data's jaw creaked open in an enormous yawn. Geordi stopped dead to stare at him.

"Wow! A yawn! That... that's a brand new autonomous reaction!"

"Fascinating..." Said Data blearily, allowing himself to be dragged into the waiting shuttle, where he slumped gratefully into a seat. Geordi sat next to him, opposite the other three senior officers. Riker spoke to the pilot, and the craft lifted gracefully from the surface to begin its journey back to the waiting _Enterprise._

Slowly, Data slumped sideways, eventually ending up with his cheek on Geordi's shoulder. The engineer chuckled and put one arm round the android to support him as he finally allowed his dream program to activate.

"Guess the journey back's going to be a quiet one." Murmured Riker. He hadn't stopped grinning all the way to the shuttle, and now he turned that smile on Geordi, who grinned in return.

"It's okay, he's pretty hard to wake once the program activates. You can talk normally."

"But _seriously_..." Riker leaned forwards. "What did you _do_ to him? I've never seen him... well, tired! I mean, you wore him out! That's gotta be some kind of record!"

"Will!" Deanna smacked him in the ribs with the back of her hand, and he looked at her in mock hurt. Crusher rolled her eyes again, although she was smiling too.

"What?" Riker rubbed his ribs. "I'm just saying..."

"You're embarrassing him, so stop it. Not everyone wants to discuss their... liaisons as eagerly as you do!" Deanna raised an eyebrow at him, and he gasped as if in shock.

"I am just concerned for my friend, that's all. It's perfectly innocent."

"Oh please!" She shook her head, setting her dark curls dancing. "I've never known anyone to pry into other people's relationships as much as you! You're a glutton for it."

"I just want to know that my friends are happy." Riker waved his hand airily. "If they're happy, then I'm happy. And being curious is just a part of my nature, because I'm such a caring guy..." He tailed off as he realised that Deanna wasn't listening to him, her mind focused elsewhere. Her brows came together and her lips narrowed.

"Deanna?" He touched her arm. "What is it?"

"Fear." She murmured. "And pain. And... shame..." She gasped, putting one hand to her head. Riker gripped her arm firmly.

"What?" He said. "Where from?"

"Here. Him. Data." She dropped her hand and looked across at the android. One of his legs was twitching spasmodically, and Geordi twisted slightly in his seat to look down on him.

"He said he'd been having nightmares." Geordi muttered, pulling Data closer. Data shivered in response, his foot drumming a rapid tattoo on the metal floor of the shuttle. Deanna winced again.

"Wake him up." She whimpered. Riker looked at her, shocked.

"Are you sensing that much from him?"

"Please, wake him, now. It's too horrible." She looked to be close to tears, and Geordi shook Data, jostling his body with his shoulder and calling his name. The only reaction was a mumbled 'no' and another shudder. Geordi twisted again, grabbing Data by both shoulders and shaking him firmly.

"Data! Wake up!" He barked. Faster than thought the android's hands came up to grip Geordi's wrists and his golden eyes flew open.

"No! Stop, please, no!" He gasped, looking but not seeing, and clawing at Geordi's sleeves. The engineer gripped his shoulders.

"It's okay, it's okay, I'm here. Look at me. It's Geordi. You're okay, you're safe." He murmured, and gradually Data's eyes focused on his face. The android drew a deep shuddering breath.

"Geordi..." He whispered, before letting his forehead sink onto the man's chest. His hands dropped from Geordi's wrists to bunch the front of his lover's uniform into his fists. Geordi wrapped his arms around him as best he could and murmured soothing nothings to him as he began to sob.


	21. Chapter 21

Anduril; The Mended Blade

Chapter one; Concutio

_Concutio. Verb. 1. Harass/intimidate.2. Rouse. 3. To damage. 4. Weaken/shake/shatter._

After a meeting with the captain, Counselor Troi cleared Data for light duties, to allow him to ease back into work gradually. In truth he was glad for the distraction that his return to the bridge provided, giving him the opportunity to focus on events outside of his own head. Barclay returned Spot to him and assured him that she had missed her owner immensely, although Data had his own opinions on the matter, as did Spot, whose first action upon returning to his quarters was to defecate into one of his shoes.

He expressed his negative emotions in his art, using the paint and canvas to try and say what he could not, and found it immensely satisfying. Troi helped him to analyse and interpret the images that flowed from his subconscious and praised him for his improvements, although he still suffered occasional bouts of anxiety. He discovered that, with the deepening of their relationship, Geordi became a steadfast presence in his life, and he was endlessly grateful for the support and kindness that his lover showed him in his darker moments. There was a depth to the engineer that Data had never seen before, that perhaps even Geordi hadn't known that he possessed, and his calming solid presence was a balm to the android's ragged soul.

It took him a further week before he felt able to involve himself in the social life of the ship, and it was with a lingering sense of trepidation that he walked into the lounge bar, his head swivelling from side to side, assessing the other patrons. Seeing nothing out of the ordinary, and with a brief wave to a group of engineers on the far side of the room, he seated himself at the bar with his hands folded on the polished surface. A dark-skinned hand covered his fingers, and he looked up into a smiling face.

"Guinan!" He exclaimed, and her smile widened under her purple broad-brimmed hat.

"You bet. What can I get you?"

"But... how do you come to be on board? When did you get here? Why have you come back?"

She held up her hand and ticked off her answers on her fingers. "I have my ways, not long ago, and I go where I like." She dropped her hands again to cover his. "It's good to see you too."

Data smiled in response, turning his hands over to grasp hers. "It _is_ good to see you."

She quirked an eyebrow at him. "You seem happy. Emotion chip working out for you?"

His face fell as he grimaced. "Sometimes." She frowned.

"You've had a hard time of it recently." It was a statement of fact, and he nodded to acknowledge, sliding his hands from hers to clasp them in his lap.

"It has been... difficult." He looked down, his eyes flicking rapidly from side to side as he sought the right words. "I would like to think that the positives outweigh the negatives, however there are times that I think that I would be better without either. But, I am learning, and I am sure that given time I will become... accustomed... to the vagaries of my emotions."

"Mmm." The noise she made was non-committal, just a sound to let him know that she was listening. He looked back up into her eyes and quirked a small smile.

"There are, however, some things that I am very thankful for."

"Like what?" She asked, head on one side.

"Data! Sorry I'm late!" Geordi slid onto the seat next to him and gave him a swift kiss on the cheek. "Geez, things have been crazy down in engineering today, I wasn't sure I was gonna get away at all!"

Guinan smiled and nodded. "Ah, I see. Something to be thankful for indeed."

"Guinan!" Geordi leapt up to reach over the bar and put his hands on her shoulders. "You're back!"

"So it would seem." She leaned across the bar to embrace him as best she could, and he laughed at the awkwardness of it.

"Where have you been?" He exclaimed, letting himself fall back into his seat.

"None of your business, young man." She scowled at him in mock ferocity. "I'll go fix you two up something to drink, so I don't have to answer any more stupid questions!" She swept away from them in false indignation, and a grinning Geordi turned his attention to his lover.

"So. How have you been today? Everything okay?"

Data shrugged one shoulder, his brow furrowed. "I experienced a minor panic attack at approximately six twenty-four, lasting five point three seven seconds."

"You okay? What caused it?" Geordi reached over and took his hand, and Data squeezed it gratefully.

"Commander Riker came to stand behind me, and..." Data looked down at their hands, frowning. "I was aware of his presence, and that he was a known and trusted friend, but, somehow the proximity triggered a memory..." He paused, staring intently into his lap.

"Hey, it's okay, you don't have to tell me if you don't want to." Geordi put a hand to Data's shoulder and the android looked up at him almost shyly.

"I do feel as if I could tell you anything. I trust you."

"I'm glad to hear it. And you can, you know. Tell me anything. But only if you want to."

"I know." Data leaned forwards to press their lips together, swift and chaste. His sensitive audio receptors picked up a muffled snort of laughter and someone making a retching sound, but... but that could be in response to anything, he told himself as he leant back. Probably entirely unconnected.

"You okay?" Geordi was looking at him, concerned. Data smiled shakily.

"Yes. Yes, I am fine."

Guinan bustled over, two glasses in her hands. She placed them in front of the two officers with a flourish.

"Something special for you, to celebrate." She announced. "My own recipe, so don't ask, because I'm not telling."

Geordi sipped as Data quirked his head. "What is it that we are celebrating?"

"You. Us. Everything. Life itself." She spread her arms wide, as if she could encompass the entire universe. "This moment, and all the ones that will come after it. Now drink, I'm done with philosophising. I want to know what you think."

Geordi lowered his glass and licked his lips appreciatively. "It's good. Actually, it's great!"

Data sipped and pondered for a moment, analysing the chemical components. He looked up at Guinan, who folded her arms.

"Well?"

He swallowed. "It is very pleasant."

He face broke into a beaming smile. "I'm glad to hear it. And don't you dare let on what's in it." She wagged her finger. "So, tell me..." She crossed her arms on the bar and leant over them conspiratorially. "When did all this start between you two?"

Data opened his mouth and then snapped it shut again, with a swift glance at Geordi.

"Would you care for me to approximate?"

"I think that would be fine, yes." She smiled.

"Five weeks, thr..." He broke off to consider for a moment. "Just over a month."

Geordi chuckled into his glass. "You're getting better at that, you know." Guinan grinned.

"I can't say I'm completely surprised, I always had a feeling there was something between you two. So what started it off?"

"We were drunk." Said Data, and Geordi snorted his drink. Guinan threw her head back and laughed loudly. Data's head swivelled between the two of them, mystified.

"Well, he's not wrong..." Said Geordi, wiping his mouth on his sleeve. "But it wasn't quite that simple."

"Well, most things that are worthwhile aren't simple. Most times the things that matter most take hard work. Dedication. I should think you would both know a thing or two about that." Guinan leaned back, brushing an imaginary speck from the gleaming bar. "Otherwise neither of you would be here. Now, I've got customers, so if you'll excuse me." She nodded to them and glided down the bar to greet another crewman.

"Man, it's good to see her again. Wonder what she's doing here." Mused Geordi. Data made a non-committal noise in his throat, and Geordi looked at him sharply.

"Something _is_ wrong, isn't it?" He said. The android shook his head, looking down into his half-empty glass.

"I can hear... they are talking about us." He murmured.

"Who?" Said Geordi, making to turn around, but Data gripped his forearm.

"No, please, I... I would like to leave."

"Data, we just got here." Geordi covered the android's hand with his own. "Is what they're saying that bad?"

"They are being... derogatory. About us... Our relationship."

"Well, forget it, ignore them. They can think what they like, doesn't change how I feel about you, so it doesn't matter. Now, I came here to see you and have a couple of drinks, so just relax and focus on me, okay?" Geordi reached out and brushed his knuckles across the android's cheek. Data managed a small smile.

"All right." Data murmured, sipping again from his drink. It really was a pleasant beverage, and he focused on the flavour and how it made him feel as he watched Geordi, who was listing the minor disasters that had plagued his day. Data studied the way his mouth moved, how he shifted his weight and used his hands for emphasis, and he allowed his mind to drift slightly, imagining those lips doing something other than talking, and those hands running over his body. As his mind wandered, his auditory sensors focused on the mention of his name by someone on the far side of the room. Almost without meaning to he homed in on the conversation around that table.

"...It's disgusting. I can't believe that he's parading that thing around in public."

"Oh stop it! He's not a thing! Besides, he's your superior officer."

There was a snort of derision. "I don't see how a machine can be an officer, it makes no more sense than handing over command to the ship's computer."

"He went through the academy, just like anyone else."

"Oh yes! I'm sure 'he' aced every test, but that doesn't mean anything, just that 'he's' got every book filed away in his memory banks! They should never have let it in to the academy in the first place."

"I'm done with this conversation, you're an ass." There was the sound of a chair scraping back, and footsteps on the carpet. The door hissed open and then closed again.

"Whatever, she's only pissed because she has some weird crush on the machine. It's gross, unnatural. And right here, in the bar? It's putting me off my drink."

There was a burst of chuckles.

"So I said, you can't just expect to... are you listening to me?"

"No." Said Data, focusing his attention back on the engineer. Geordi looked annoyed, but his expression softened as he reached out to take the android's hand again.

"If it's really bothering you, we can go." He said softly. "You want me to go have a word with them?"

"No!" Said Data, a little too loudly, and a few patrons turned to regard him. He ducked his head in embarrassment. "No." He said, softer. "I... Perhaps we should just leave. I am sorry that our evening is being cut short."

"Not your fault." Geordi's face was grim, and he gripped the android's hand tightly. "Was what they were saying insubordinate?"

"It... it was a private conversation. I should not have been eavesdropping."

"It's not private in a place like this. I'm gonna go talk to them, you tell me who it was." Geordi made to rise, and Data clamped a hand to his shoulder.

"Please." He hissed, eyes darting. "I... I do not wish to cause any offense."

"You're not the one causing offence!" Geordi's voice rose, and heads turned again.

"Is there a problem?" Guinan appeared next to them, leaning over the bar. Her dark eyes were flashing, and Data had no doubt that she knew exactly what was going on.

"No. There is no problem, Guinan." He took a breath and stood. "We were just leaving."

"So soon? Are you sure?" She frowned a little. "We have a lot of catching up to do."

"Perhaps we can continue our conversation at a time when the bar is not so... crowded." Replied Data. He tried hard to make his voice bland, but even he heard the tremble in it. Suddenly the bar seemed too warm, the voices too loud. He darted his eyes to the door and back to Geordi, who sighed.

"Okay, fine. Let's go. See you later, Guinan." Geordi gave her a half-hearted wave as he followed the android, who was already striding towards the door.

From their table on the other side of the room the engineers watched them go, and Lars Jensen sneered to himself.

Behind the bar Guinan's eyes glittered darkly.

"Yeah. Not simple." She shook her head sadly.


	22. Chapter 22

Chapter Two; Exanimo

_Exanimo. Verb. 1. Be out of breath. 2. Deprive of life. 3. Scare, alarm greatly. 4. Tire, exhaust._

* * *

"Keep track of that comet, Mister Data, let us know if it looks to be coming anywhere near the system."

"Aye sir, tracking and projecting likely course." His fingers flew across the screen, not only monitoring the object but listening in on local com chatter, checking computer usage and power levels, and monitoring life-signs on the few planets reachable on long-range scanners. "It appears that its projected path will take it safely through the system, assuming nothing affects its course."

"Very good. Keep monitoring the com chatter, let me know if you hear anything significant." He looked up as the turbolift doors opened and Riker emerged onto the bridge. "Ah, Number One, a word in my ready room." Picard pushed himself from the command chair, straightening his uniform as he strode from the bridge. Riker glanced round, making sure all was in order before following.

* * *

Picard seated himself behind his desk, motioning for Riker to sit. "So," The captain lifted a PADD to read, "I've had a report back from Starfleet headquarters. They questioned the Zibalian further and he repeated what he told you. They've confirmed with Daystrom, Maddox is gone."

"That bastard." Riker clenched his fists, his bearded face thunderous. "I should have known he'd be behind this."

"Indeed." Picard flicked the PADD onto the desk. "It would seem that the Commander informed the Institute that he was going to be conducting a field research project, and then failed to report in. They listed him as AWOL, and nobody's heard from him since. Apart, that is, for Kivas Fajo. However..." He leaned back, steepling his fingers. "The only evidence we have that he is involved in Data's kidnapping has been provided by a known criminal. We cannot rule out other potential suspects."

Riker ground his teeth. "It's got to be him, sir, it's _got_ to be. Whoever it was knew all about Data's systems, his physiology..."

"Which is all on file. Possibly there has been a breach of information, and the Commander's personnel profile has fallen into the wrong hands."

"I'd stake my life on it being Maddox, he's had it in for Data ever since he applied for the academy."

"I understand that they became correspondents years ago, that they exchanged many messages."

"Maddox wanted to know everything about him, I mean _everything._ For all we know, Data's still messaging him now. We've got to tell him."

"No, Number One." Picard held up his hand. "Again, I must stress that we have no clear evidence that Maddox is involved, although I must say I share your conviction. If they are in communication, it may put Maddox on the alert if Data breaks off his regular message schedule. That could ruin our plans. If..." He stressed the word, leaning forwards. "If it _is_ Maddox."

"So we're still on to monitor from here? Headquarters have cleared us?"

"For now, yes. I have to say I don't like it, if they still want Data and they're determined and clever enough, they may still try to take him. However, considering our position relative to the rendezvous site, we are the best ship available to monitor. We believe that they are using stolen Romulan cloaking technology, so we need our scanners calibrated to look for any trace we can find of them."

"I'll get engineering right on it."

"But understand, discretion must be our watch-word. The fewer people who know why we're here and what – or should I say who- we're looking for, the better. I do _not_ want Data put under any more stress than he's already dealing with. Lord alone knows, I've been through enough myself to know how difficult this must be for him."

"Understood, sir."

* * *

"Geordi!"

"Commander! Gimme a moment..." Geordi stared intently at the screen and tapped a few times. "Okay, that looks good. Fisk, can you take over here?"

"Yes sir!" The tall man loped over and took Geordi's place at the console as he turned and moved towards Riker.

"What can I do for you, sir?" He asked, wiping his forehead with the back of his hand.

"I need a recalibration of the forward sensor array."

Geordi frowned, puzzled. "Is it not something you can do from the bridge?"

"Not exactly, it's on a need to know basis."

Riker drew him to one side and briefly outlined their covert mission, and as he explained Geordi's expression darkened.

"And you don't want him to know? This is crazy! He's probably worked it out already by our position! You think lying to him about why we're here is gonna put him at ease? Forgive me, Commander, but it's plain stupid to think that he's not gonna figure out that something's up! We either need to prepare for them to try again, in which case he needs to be ready, or we get the hell out of here!"

"I know how you feel, but we're the best equipped ship in this sector. If anyone's going to sniff them out it's going to be us. If we can get the sensor array..."

"To hell with the sensors! We should be on the other side of the quadrant!"

"Geordi..." Riker put his hands on the engineer's shoulders. "I know how you feel. Trust me, I do. But Data knew when he took this post that it was going to be dangerous. You can't shield him..."

"No, I know, but I don't think we should be deliberately putting him in harm's way either." Geordi clenched his jaw, and then released his tension in a sigh. Riker patted his shoulder and dropped his hands.

"And that's why we need the recalibrated sensors. Find them first, and the whole thing is over. I know you can do it."

Geordi rubbed the back of his neck, agitated. "It's a royal pain, but I'll do my best. And I'm gonna have to do it alone, no way I can explain to anyone else why we're looking for Romulans way out here."

"Picard to la Forge." Geordi looked up sharply and tapped his combadge.

"La Forge here."

"My ready room, now. It's Data."

Geordi didn't even answer, sprinting to the turbolift with Riker hard on his heels.

* * *

It had all been going so well.

He had so many things to concentrate on, so much information to catalogue and assimilate, so many different systems to keep track of. He had been sure that, under those circumstances, nothing could distract him.

"Commander Data, sir? Could you come to the science station? I've got an anomaly."

"Of course." He pushed himself up and loped around the sloping bridge to the science officer, who was frowning at the display.

"Here, sir, look. What do you make of that?"

Data leaned in to look at the blip on the screen.

"Curious... Have you tried a sweep with the refitted aft sensor cluster?"

"Oh, no! I forgot that whole bank had been given a boost!" The science officer grinned as he punched in a sequence, and ran the scan.

"I'm still getting used to this ship, I guess. So many new features. Man, but I love my new toys."

_I love my new toys I love my new toysIlovemynewtoylovemynewtoy imagine how... alluring you are Oh, like a moving, feeling, perfect doll my pretty one hands and knees hands and knees handsandkneesandkneesknees fear pain fear pain fear pain stop stop stp stp spspsps_

His fingers clenched spasmodically and the screen under them shattered with a sharp crack. Picard shot up out of his seat to turn and stare, and the science officer stumbled back with a cry.

"Data!" Picard barked.

_Now, Data. I won't ask again. Do. As. You're. Told. Data! Play. The. Game! Too much going on in his head and he wanted it to stop stop stop _

He couldn't move, there was a weight pressing down on him, he couldn't breathe, he would overheat and overload and then he would die and Kivas Fajo would have killed him, just as surely as if he had beaten him to death in the gallery. He drew a shuddering breath through his clenched teeth as he fought against the tidal surge of perfect memory, every second of his hideous encounter with the Zibalian flashing through his mind just as if he were still there. Every sharp stab of pain, every shock of shame and fear, coursing through him as fresh as the day it happened. He sucked in another breath.

"Data." Picard was next to him now, talking softly. He didn't reach out, didn't try and touch him, and Data was grateful for that small mercy.

"Ssssssirrr..." He slurred through his grinding teeth.

"My ready room. Now." It was almost an order. He could follow orders. As long as he did what he was told the fear pain fear pain fear pain would stop stop stp stp spspsps

"Sssiiirr..." He pushed himself up and forced his trembling hands to release the shattered glass balled up in his fists. Picard turned and walked away and Data followed, his golden eyes fixed on the captain's back as Picard lead him off the bridge.

"Sit down." Picard pointed to the couch and Data sat, placing his hands on his knees.

"What do you need?" The captain asked.

Data's jaw worked rhythmically, and he managed to grind out the word. "Geoooordiii."

Picard tapped his combadge as he sat behind his desk to watch the android closely.

* * *

Geordi strode into the ready room and went straight to where Data sat, bolt upright, staring straight ahead with his hands gripping his knees. There was a trickle of yellow fluid seeping through his fingers and soaking into his uniform. Geordi knelt down to look into his face. He could hear Data's teeth grinding.

"Hey, Data." He said softly. "I'm here. It's okay."

Data's eyes slowly focused on his face, and the android began to shake. His jaw stopped working, and he opened his mouth.

"I remember..." He whispered.

"It's okay, you're here, you're safe. You know me."

"Geordi..." Data looked down, and slowly turned his hands over, regarding the shards of glass in his palms with fear and confusion.

"Don't worry about that, we'll get you fixed. Look at me. Do you know where you are?"

Riker stood in the doorway, confused. "What's going on?"

"Take the bridge, Number One." Picard jerked his head and Riker nodded, moving back to allow the door to shut behind him.

"Geordi..." Picard began.

"A moment, Captain, please." Geordi held up his hand towards Picard, his gaze fixed on Data. "Do you know where you are?" He repeated. Data swallowed.

"Enterprise." He croaked.

"Yeah, you're on the Enterprise. You're with me. It's gonna be okay, right? I'm here."

"Yes." Data shuddered and drew in a breath, heaved it out in a shuddering sigh. He screwed his eyes shut tightly, and his hands clenched on his knees.

Geordi shuffled forwards to put his hands over Data's, and the android opened his eyes with a gasp, sending two shimmering yellow tears rolling down his cheeks.

"When will it stop?" He whispered, and Geordi shook his head.

"I don't know, Data. But I'll be here, okay? No matter how long it takes, I'll be here."

"My God. He's having flash-backs, isn't he?" Murmured Picard, slumping back in his chair. He ran a hand over his face and seemed to age, his own mind turning to his torment at the hands of the Borg, and his long road to recovery. Some days, he was sure he would never recover fully. But at least he had the hope that one day the memories would fade, lose their sharp edge...

Geordi moved in closer, putting himself between Data's legs to pull him close. The android pressed his face into the crook of his neck and Geordi rubbed between his shoulder blades soothingly as Data put his arms around him awkwardly, holding his glass-studded hands away from his back. Data took several long, shuddering breaths before unwrapping his arms and sitting up, brushing the remains of his tears from his face with his sleeve. Geordi reached out with both hands to cup his face.

"You okay?" Geordi asked. Data blew out a sigh.

"I will be all right." He murmured. Geordi leaned in to press their foreheads together.

"Okay." He said, pulling away. "You want to go to engineering, get your hands fixed?"

"No, your quarters, please."

"Sure, we can do that." There was a soft cough from behind him, and Geordi turned to see Picard looking over at him, his face inscrutable.

"Uh, that is... with your permission, Sir?" Geordi stammered. In truth, he had forgotten that the captain was there, so focused was he on drawing Data out of his misery.

"Oh, by all means, Mister La Forge. Data, I expect you back on the bridge, when you feel ready. Take all the time you need."

"Yes sir." Murmured Data, allowing Geordi to pull him to his feet and lead him from the room, his injured hands held awkwardly beside him.

Picard leaned back in his chain again, a slow smile spreading across his face.

"Well, well." He mused. "Well, well."


	23. Chapter 23

Chapter Three; Probrum

_Probrum. 1. Abuse, insult. 2. Disgrace. 3. Shame_

* * *

"Did you hear? He freaked out on the bridge!"

"I heard he went nuts and smashed up a science station!"

"I can't believe he's been cleared for duty, he's obviously not well..."

"It just proves that he has no business being in a command position."

"Sssh! He's coming this way!"

Data clenched his jaw as he walked towards the warp core. They couldn't know that he had heard every word. Or, perhaps they did know, and just didn't care. Or maybe they _wanted _him to hear.

He found the access panel and lifted it easily, hunkering down to view the conduits beneath. Most humans found this sort of job dull, but Data was beginning to enjoy the complexity of it, and the way it forced him to focus. Or at least, that was how it _had_ been.

He put his hands down into the delicate traceries of wires, gently splicing and rerouting, striving for maximum efficiency. He referred to the PADD he had resting on the deck, double checking readings and checking for fluctuations, and forcing his mind to focus on the task at hand. But with his phenomenal computational rate, there was still a part of his consciousness that he couldn't quiet. The part that made the back of his neck prickle, the tiny portion of his thought processes that convinced him that he was being watched, scrutinised, that even now someone was creeping up behind him.

"Excuse me, 'sir'..."

Data tensed. He knew the voice, heard the sneer.

"Jensen." He replied blandly.

"Pardon me, but... we weren't expecting to see you back at work so soon after your incident on the bridge."

"I have been pronounced fit for duty." Data didn't turn, didn't dignify the man with eye contact. He heard Jensen shuffle his feet, and two other humanoids approaching. Tramin and Fisk, by the sound of it.

"Oh well, thank goodness for that! I'd hate to think that there was a rogue android on board, going around smashing things because he _wasn't_ fit for duty! Good thing it wasn't you!"

Data closed his eyes tightly and forced his breathing to remain even and steady.

"Frankly, 'sir', I don't believe that you've _ever_ been fit for duty. The very idea of it is laughable. But now? You're a wreck! How do you expect to command, for others to respect you?"

Data opened his eyes and stood slowly, turning to face the man, who was flanked by his friends. Fisk looked awkward, as if he didn't really want to be there. Tramin's blue skin had flushed, he looked curious and excited by the confrontation. Jensen's icy eyes fixed on the android's golden irises.

"I command respect, Jensen, by virtue of my rank and experience." Data murmured evenly. "If you feel that you are unable to recognize that, then it is not for me to prove myself to you."

"On the contrary!" Jensen sneered. "That is precisely what you should do! I don't respect you, because you don't _deserve_ respect. Some of us have worked for years to get our ranks and positions. But you..."

"Went through the academy just as you did, and worked my way through the ranks." Data held tightly to his words, forcing to the back of his mind the whispering in his own voice that Jensen was right, he did not deserve his rank, he was broken, ruined, frightened. He realised he was trembling, and he clenched his hands into fists to stop them from shaking.

Jensen looked the android up and down, as if working out if he had a chance in a fight.

"What did that Zibalian do to you, to make you like this?" He said suddenly. Data shuddered, and Jensen realised he had struck a nerve. He pressed home his advantage. "How did he break you so thoroughly? I saw you when you got back... you were a mess. Is that what happened? He broke your mind as well as your body, and now you can't control yourself?"

"I... I am in control." He hadn't meant to stutter, but the engineer's words echoed his own thoughts so completely that it was like arguing with himself. Jensen bared his teeth in a smile and stepped towards him. Data stepped back reflexively, giving ground, and Jensen barked a laugh.

"You're afraid!" He said with delight. "_You!_ How do you expect me to respect you now?"

"That's enough, Lars. Come on." Fisk put his hand on Jensen's shoulder, but he shrugged it off.

"You go, Fisk, if you think you can still take orders from a _thing _like this." Jensen looked the android up and down again, his lip curled in derision. "And to think that our chief engineer takes it to bed with him..."

"That is none of your business." Data's eyes flashed brightly. "Believe what you wish of my ability to command, take your complaints to the captain if you wish, but you have no right to judge me by the company I keep."

"I'm not judging _you, _I'm judging _him._" Jensen stepped forward again, but this time Data held his ground, allowing the man into his personal space. "I used to think that Commander La Forge was a good enough officer, but when I found out he was taking a sex-doll to bed..." Data flinched, his head twitched to one side, and he looked at Jensen impassively.

"That is enough." Data tapped his combadge. "Data to Daniels."

"Daniels here."

"Please send a security detail to main engineering to take Ensign Jensen to the brig for insubordination."

"Aye, sir. Daniels out."

"Really? Insubordination?" Jensen folded his arms. "I don't think there's a man on board that would disagree with me about your ability to command."

"Wrong again, Ensign." Geordi stalked over and grabbed the man by his collar.

"Sir, I'm sorry, I tried to stop him..." Fisk stammered, and Tramin stepped back, his eyes darting from face to face.

"I'll talk to you two later. Go, before I change my mind." Geordi growled. The two engineers needed no further encouragement and scuttled away, as two security staff exited the turbolift and made their way over.

"Take him to the brig, we'll sort out the formal charges." Geordi snarled. He was shaking with rage, practically threw the ensign at the security team as they approached. They cuffed his hands behind his back and he sneered at them.

"I'm only telling the truth! Everyone knows he's not fit to be in command!"

"Get him out, now!" Barked Geordi, and the guards dragged him away. Geordi ran a hand through his hair and breathed out his anger, forcing himself to relax. "You okay?" He said, turning to Data, only to discover that the android had turned away and was leaning into the access port, his hands toying with the conduits. Geordi frowned and knelt down next to him to look into his face. It was a blank slate, devoid of emotion. Geordi put a hand on his back.

"Did you switch off the chip?" He murmured.

"Yes. It seemed prudent under the circumstances." Data replied evenly, his nimble hands finishing the last few adjustments. He replaced the hatch cover and stood, turning to look down at the engineer.

"I believe that it would be in my best interests to keep the emotion chip switched off for the remainder of my shift today, to ensure that there are no further incidents."

"You say that like it was your fault." Geordi brushed his knees off as he stood, his brow creased with concern. "I've always had trouble with Jensen, you know that."

"I am aware that I was not the instigator of the confrontation. Nevertheless, I reacted negatively to his comments, and further undermined myself in his eyes. Had I been in control of myself, it would not have exacerbated the situation. If you will excuse me, I have other duties to attend to." Data began to walk towards the turbolift.

"You gonna turn it on again tonight?" Geordi called after him.

Data stopped, turned back. "Yes. Will you be available to supervise?"

"Would you like me to be?"

"I believe it would be beneficial to have you in attendance."

"Okay then. Yeah, I'll be there."

Data nodded once, and left the engineering department.

* * *

"This is what you feared would happen."

"Not exactly... He was already prejudiced against you."

"But the fact that we are involved with each other made him lose respect for you. It is my fault."

"Don't say that. It's not you, it's him, he's the one at fault. You've done nothing wrong."

Data lowered his head into his hands. "I fear that he is correct about my ability to command."

"Hey, come on now." Geordi reached across the table to run a hand through the android's hair. "I don't believe that, neither should you."

"I have been contemplating it for some time. I am... troubled... by the thought that I may never recover, not fully. If so, I will have no choice but to step down."

"You've been improving day-by-day, getting better all the time. Don't let that idiot drag you down."

"What if he is right, Geordi?" He lifted his head to look across at the engineer. "What if I am too unstable, too damaged? What if..."

"You'll ruin your life worrying about what might be. You gotta focus on now, and getting better. Okay, yeah, maybe you won't get back to the way you were, but you're already so much better than before! I respect you, so does the captain, and Riker, and... and everyone, except that jerk Jensen!"

Data managed a small smile. "Thank you, Geordi."

"Yeah, well, that's what I'm here for." He reached across the table again to take the android's hands. "You know what you need? Something to take your mind off things. How about we go to the holodeck?"

Data frowned slightly. "Are you not on the roster for the alpha shift tomorrow?"

"Yeah? Oh, I guess it is kinda late... Well, tomorrow then?"

Data shook his head. "I am on Beta shift, then night watch."

"Oh, okay. Well, rain-check on the holodeck then." Geordi sighed. "Anything you'd like to do for the rest of the evening? Something to cheer you up?"

"I have a few ideas..." Data raised Geordi's hands to his mouth and ran his lips across the knuckles, his breath warm. Geordi shivered.

"Well, yeah, there is always that."


	24. Chapter 24

Chapter Four; Obrepo

_Obrepo. Noun. 1. Creep up on/approach unawares. 2. Pay surprise visit on. 3. Sneak/drop in._

* * *

"This is it."

Geordi leaned over the table in the briefing room, a PADD held out before him. He slid it up the table to the captain, who regarded the screen with one eyebrow raised.

"Forgive me, La Forge, but this doesn't seem like much to get excited about."

"What you're looking at is a burst of tetryon radiation." Geordi leaned back. "We think that it could be the result of a Romulan cloaking device being deactivated and then reactivated, possibly to allow them to use their weapons, or beam someone onboard."

"This is the best we've got?" Riker looked down the table at the engineer, who shrugged.

"It's _all_ we've got. There's nothing else out there that looks even remotely like another ship. Their cloak is perfect... if they're even there at all."

Picard tossed the PADD onto the table. "If this is all we have, there won't be much to report back to headquarters." He frowned, clasping his hands on the table in front of him. He looked up at the other two men under his brows.

"I'm going to need more concrete evidence. Do you think we could risk getting closer to the rendezvous site?"

"We can try, but unless they slip up again, I don't think proximity is going to matter much." Geordi rubbed the back of his neck. "I'll be honest, I'm hoping they've given up and left. I'll be happy if we don't find anything at all."

"I hope that your personal feelings on the matter won't prevent you from giving this your full attention." Picard frowned, and Geordi felt his face heat.

"No sir." He muttered.

"Bridge to Captain Picard." The intercom thrummed with the voice.

"Go ahead." Picard replied.

"Sir, we have a ship coming in on our target coordinates, it looks like it could be the Jovis."

"I'm on my way. La Forge, Number One, with me."

* * *

Picard watched the viewscreen intently, Riker by his side. Geordi had taken a science station at the back of the bridge, his fingers flying over the screen.

"This is as close as we can safely approach. I assume their scanners don't have the same range as ours, or they aren't expecting to be watched. Either way, they haven't spotted us." Said Daniels.

The screen was showing a tiny blip, a miniscule craft scudding through space. It was the _Jovis_, their scans had proved that much.

"So why have they come back? Unless they have something else to transfer over." Riker murmured. The time for secrecy was over, and the bridge crew had been updated on the situation as known, with the exception of Data. The android was in his quarters, his shift for the day done. Thankfully it meant that the captain had been spared awkward explanations.

Picard nodded thoughtfully. "We can only hope. If they do, then they'll have to drop the cloak."

"There!" Daniels pointed at the screen, where a small vessel had appeared as if from nowhere.

"Can we identify?" Barked Picard.

"It's... Federation. Looks to be an Aerie class ship, can't get a name..." Daniels was frowning at his screen. Riker clenched his fist.

"It's got to be Maddox, it's the same kind of ship he went AWOL in!"

"La Forge, scan that ship for human life-signs." Picard's gaze was fixed on the tiny ship, so far away, but potentially so dangerous.

"Got him! One human life-sign! No other humans on board. It's got to be him." Geordi thumped the screen with his fist in triumph.

"Picard to transporter room. Lock on to the human life-sign at the coordinates specified by Commander La Forge and beam them over."

"Yes sir, receiving coordinates. Locked on and ready to beam."

"Do it! Daniels, get a security team down there now, I want Maddox in a holding cell immediately."

"Aye sir, team en route."

* * *

Jessica Hesling toyed with the book in her hands nervously as she crept down the corridor. It had taken her all afternoon to pluck up the courage, and now she was nearly to his door, she was dragging her feet. She had meant to return Data's book to him ages ago, but then everything had gone so wrong... She hoped she would be able to apologise for Jensen's appalling behaviour, perhaps reassure the lieutenant commander that she had nothing to do with it. And then he would pull her into his strong arms and tell her... She shook her ginger hair in irritation and heaved a sigh. Why would he ever be interested in her? Shy, bookish, too many freckles. Besides, he and Geordi were a thing now, right? I mean, it's not like she could just waltz into his quarters and say...

"Computer, locate Commander Data." She said, for the fifth time. She had asked at every intersection, and she wasn't even sure if it was to make sure he was there, or in the hope that he would be somewhere else so she wouldn't have to see him...

"Commander Data is in his quarters." The computer replied.

"Yes, of course he is. Thank you." She murmured, feeling her cheeks redden. Nothing for it then. She took the last few strides needed to carry her to his door, and pressed the entrance pad.

No response. Perhaps he hadn't heard. She pressed again, heard the chime, but still no answer.

"Uh, hello? Commander Data? It's... It's Jess... Jess Hesling." She spoke through the door, getting more embarrassed by the second. Maybe he didn't want to see anyone. Maybe he didn't want to see _her._ Maybe he hated her...

"Data?" She called once more. Nothing.

"Computer... Locate Commander Data." What a ridiculous idea, as if he could leave his quarters without her seeing.

"Commander Data is no longer on the Enterprise."

* * *

Picard stalked into the brig, his face thunderous. He strode to the cell holding the human they had beamed over, who was sitting on the bunk twisting his hands nervously.

"Who the hell are you?" Barked Picard.

"Uh, my... my name is Marsden. George Marsden. I was with the commander on his ship, and then..."

"Who were you with? What commander?"

"Uh, Commander Maddox, we were on a survey, and he said he had to meet with someone about some equipment..."

"Damn it!" Picard whirled away from him. "Picard to bridge."

"Bridge here."

"It's not him, Maddox is still on that other ship. Get him, now!"

"No can do, captain." Geordi's voice came over the com. "Just a few seconds ago the ship cloaked, and the Jovis jumped to warp, they're both gone."

"Then what the hell was this all about?" Picard growled. "They made us think we had Maddox, and then left? This makes no sense."

"You've got me, Captain." Geordi was frowning at the screen, as if the fading energy signatures could give him some clue. His combadge chirped.

"La Forge here."

"Um, Commander? It's Hesling. Um, has Data gone on an away mission? Only, there's no answer at his door..."

* * *

Geordi almost smashed the panel punching in the override, squeezed through the door before it was fully open and burst into Data's quarters, shouting his name. Spot leapt up from her place on the couch and dashed under the bed.

There was a book open on the couch, spine bent and pages down, as if placed there a moment ago. A half full cup of tea on the table, still steaming. A cat toy, just a feather on a string really, lying in the middle of the floor.

_Commander Data is no longer on the Enterprise._

_Commander Data is no longer on the Enterprise._

_Commander Data is no longer on the Enterprise._

_Commander Data is no longer on the Enterprise._


	25. Chapter 25

Damocles; The Perilous Blade

Chapter One; Repono

_Repono. Verb. 1. Put back. 2. Restore. 3. Repeat 4. Store_

* * *

When he materialised behind the glowing force field his first reaction was to laugh, which startled him. He wasn't quite sure where the impulse had come from, and the feeling bubbled up through him until it left his mouth as a hysterical sob. Ah, nervous laughter, a response to fear. Well, that made sense.

There was a Romulan male glaring at him from the other side of the force field.

Data twitched his head, and the fear stopped.

"Why have you transported me here?" He asked. The Romulan didn't reply, except to glance over and nod to someone outside of Data's field of vision. Two more Romulans approached, a male and a female. They were armed with disruptors, although they were holstered. The first Romulan male was holding a rod-like object, vaguely reminiscent of a Klingon pain stick.

"Come with us." The Romulan said, and deactivated the force field.

"Where are you taking me?" He asked, but they simply stood and waited for him to follow the order. He stepped out of the cell, and the two guards turned and led him from the room and down a narrow corridor, with the first guard behind him. He walked twelve paces and then dashed forwards and swung both of his fists around into the two guards ahead of him, slamming the breath from their bodies with a hammer-blow to each of their stomachs. As they sank to the floor he made to grab the female's disruptor from its holster, but instead found that, radiating from a point on his back, all of his tactile sensors had activated in a wave of sensory information, causing all of his micro-hydraulics and servos to fire randomly in response. He flailed uselessly as he fell to the floor, ending up face to face with the male Romulan he had downed, who was gasping for air, and looked furious.

"Get up." Said the only guard still standing, as he pulled the rod away. Data's limbs stilled and his sensors stopped registering that curious sensation, and he pushed himself to his feet.

"I am obliged to continue to attempt to escape." He informed the guard, who shrugged.

"I am obliged to stop you. Now, move." The Romulan still had the stick held ready, and Data contemplated his options for a moment before turning and continuing down the corridor, leaving the two other guards to stumble after.

"In there." The Romulan pointed with the rod, indicating a doorway to a laboratory, and Data took the opportunity to whip his hand out sideways to grab the guard's arm and twist, forcing him to drop the stick with a cry. Data forced the Romulan to his knees and followed him down, snatching the rod-like weapon from the floor.

What he hadn't expected was that the person emerging from the laboratory would know exactly where to jab him in the back.

* * *

When he was reactivated he was standing in the laboratory. It was standard Starfleet grey, the various consoles shimmering with light, gleaming on glass and chrome. It appeared clean and clinical, much like the man moving around from behind him to stand and look into his face. Under his sharp blue uniform his body was lean and toned, not an ounce of spare flesh. His face was long and his dark eyes hooded, with the shadow of stubble on his chiselled jaw. To Data, he was unmistakeable.

"Commander Maddox." Data said.

"Please, Data, I think we've known each other for long enough to be on first name terms. Call me Bruce."

"Why am I here?"

"I would have thought you'd worked that out for yourself by now. Why don't you tell me?" Maddox had picked up a tricorder and was scanning the android, transferring the information to a PADD held in his other hand.

"I surmise that you are the person that Kivas Fajo was intending to deliver me to. You have the knowledge and the means to have provided him with the tools of my capture, and your information on the systems of the Enterprise presumably allowed you to beam me out at the rendezvous point. I assume that you are working either with or for the Romulans, who have provided you with personnel and technology, and I am forced to conclude that in return you intend to provide them with androids of their own, modelled on myself."

"Excellent." Maddox said to the PADD. He looked up at the android.

"This is fascinating. You've made some... very interesting modifications to your circuitry since I last had the opportunity to examine you. Some of the alterations appear to have happened as a result of changes in your programming, new neural pathways and subroutines, which is just wonderful. However, there are some adjustments that you've made manually, or had done for you. Correct?"

"I am under no obligation to provide you with any information regarding my physiology, or anything else for that matter."

"No, no, of course not." Maddox put the PADD down and thought for a moment, before fixing his dark eyes on the android.

"Data, I am sure you are aware that it is possible for me to make your time here incredibly uncomfortable. However, I am giving you the chance to understand that if you simply do as I ask, then all of that... unpleasantness, can be avoided. I would much rather have your cooperation in this, I want us to work together. Do you understand?"

"I am duty bound to attempt to escape. I am also compelled to take you into custody if at all possible."

Maddox pursed his lips and nodded, as if this was exactly the reply he had expected.

"Fajo managed to make you comply, didn't he? Do you really wish to go through that again?"

"I was not able to switch my emotion chip off. Now that that option is available to me, you will be unable to negatively affect me with either physical or psychological abuse."

"Of course." Maddox pressed his palms together and brought his hands up to his lips, almost as if in prayer. He closed his eyes for a moment, before lowering his hands and locking eyes with Data.

"Then I'm afraid you leave me no alternative. I don't want to use force, you understand, I would much rather you helped me willingly. But I will do what I have to do."

He shook his head and turned around to pick up a small object from a table to one side, and Data immediately recognised it as being the same as the inhibiting device used by Kivas Fajo. It took him three long strides to reach the man and grab the point where his neck met his shoulder. Maddox tensed, and then relaxed as the nerve grip rendered him insensible, and Data lowered him to the floor. The android wrenched a panel from one of the terminals and pulled out a bundle of cables, swiftly binding Maddox's hands behind his back and tying his ankles together. That done, Data searched the lab briefly for weapons but, finding none, settled for twisting and ripping the torn-off panel into a makeshift knife. He picked up the inhibiting device and crushed it, and then made for the door. It slid open to reveal the Romulan guard, pain stick held out before him at the ready. No challenge for the android really, who would have struck the guard's outstretched arm had he not been distracted by a voice from right behind him.

"Oh, Data, I am disappointed." Maddox said, and Data whirled around to see the commander standing shaking his head just a pace behind him, and that moment of confusion was enough to enable the guard to jab the rod into his back again, and the android found himself on the floor once more, synthetic muscles twitching. Maddox's shining black shoes came into his field of vision, the guard removed the rod from his back, and Maddox deactivated him again.

* * *

This time when he came back online he was in a standing position once more, although now his arms were stretched up over his head.

"Now Data, please, I will have no more of this ridiculous behaviour. You must have realised by now that you won't be able to escape, and I really don't want to have to be more severe with you than I have to. I want you to help me, willingly. Can't you see that fighting against me will do no good?"

"I will do everything in my power to resist you, Commander. I will not aid you, nor will I comply with your requests. I will continue to attempt to escape." Data looked up at his wrists, held tightly in duranium cuffs, anchored to the ceiling with thick chain. He could see that the chain ran through some sort of mechanism, presumably to allow it to be shortened and lengthened. He pulled experimentally, and then tugged sharply. The chain and cuffs held and he theorised that, as Maddox had access to much information regarding his physiology, the restraints had been made specifically to account for his android strength.

"Data..." Maddox sighed. "I am trying to be reasonable!"

"You have captured me and are holding me against my will. You have restrained me, and you are now threatening me with torture should I continue to resist you. This is, in my opinion, far from reasonable."

"I understand Data, I really do, but you must try and see this from my perspective!" Maddox ran a hand over his long face. "It has taken me years! Years of planning and preparation, a, quite frankly extortionate amount of Latinum, and now my career. That's how much you mean to me Data!" The man clenched his fist passionately, slamming into his open palm. "I have given up everything for this opportunity! And all I ask is that you help me! You, you are my world now, Data. You would deny me, after everything I've gone through?"

"I would deny you, yes, after everything that _you_ have put _me_ through." The android replied mildly.

"You know, I really had hoped for better." Maddox frowned deeply, and picked up a sonic driver. He stepped towards the android, and Data bounced off the balls of his feet, lifting himself on the chain to wrap his legs around the man's neck. Maddox dropped the driver in shock and clutched at the android's shins, and Data twisted his body and snapped the man's neck. The body dropped to the floor with a thud, and Data pulled himself upside down to brace his feet against the winch. With a single explosive movement he straightened his body and the mechanism burst apart. He had just enough space to be able to put his hands down before his face met the floor, and as his feet hit the deck he was already reaching for the driver, ready to remove the cuffs.

"For goodness sake, Data! You do realise that you've left me no other option now?" Barked Maddox, and Data looked up to see the man in the doorway and the Romulan guard striding towards him, pain stick sparking with energy. Data dropped the driver to backhand the Romulan in the jaw, and the guard fell with a grunt of pain. Data started towards Maddox, but once again found himself on the floor, the rod in his back. He watched the Maddox with the broken neck disappear, drifting into spiralling motes of light.

'Ah, of course! Holograms!' He thought, and the world went black again.

* * *

He came back to consciousness with a gasp as terror flooded his mind. His hands were chained above him, the chain so taut that his feet were barely touching the floor. He tried to lift himself, but his arms trembled and spasmed, and he recognized the crippling effect of the strange inhibiting device acting upon him, weakening the signal from his positronic brain to his limbs. His head swung from side to side, assessing. Maddox walked around from behind him.

"There now. How do you feel?"

"I... I am f-functioning within..." Data stammered, and Maddox clicked his tongue.

"I didn't ask about whether or not you were functioning! I asked how you were feeling! We'll never get anywhere if you continue to be so obstinate!" Maddox clenched his teeth in irritation and picked up a PADD. "There have been significant changes in your neural nets since I saw you last, and I need as much information as I can get, and the only way that we can do this properly is for you to comply!"

"I will not!" Data set his jaw, his breathing harsh with barely restrained panic. "I will not allow you to disassemble me!"

"Disassemble? Data, I'm not going to disassemble you!" Maddox's jaw dropped, his eyes wide with surprise. Data's eyes flicked from side to side in agitation as he assimilated this new information.

"It... it was always your intention..." Data stammered, shock and confusion writ large on his face.

"Oh, it was foolish of me to think that I'd learn what I needed to from dissecting you. No, I wouldn't, I couldn't! I need you, Data! You can help me! And, I saw how well you did with Lal... I'm sorry, I know the memory must be painful for you," Maddox said softly, as Data's face crumpled, "but, this way, we can work together, and make new androids, ones that work, and live, and thrive! Think what we can achieve if we work together!"

"I will not help you. You intend to give them to the Romulans. They will be used as tools, as slaves or worse. I will not allow it."

"And I understand your trepidation, but you have my assurance and theirs that our androids will be treated with dignity." Maddox was regarding the android with fond understanding. "You are so precious to me, do you really think that I would allow anything bad to happen to our creations? They will be cherished..."

"You allowed Fajo to mistreat me!" Data said, anger blazing in his golden eyes. "You gave him the means to torture me, and... and to..." His voice faltered, and Maddox looked down, breathing out hard through his nose.

"I know. I gave him too much power over you, I understand that. I never dreamed that he would... abuse you in that manner."

"You... know what he did?" Data whispered, horror creeping over him as Maddox nodded. The man lifted dark eyes to meet his.

"I saw the security footage. Fajo was sending me everything, so that I could be prepared for your arrival. But, frankly, I was shocked. I had no idea that he would do that, I assure you. But, it did help me. Now, I have a better idea of what is necessary to ensure your compliance. You'll have realised that I've removed the switch from your emotion chip, and the visual acuity transmitter is gone too, so there'll be no more transmissions. And I am sorry, Data, truly I am, but you know, you've left me no other choice." Maddox shook his head slowly as he lifted the pain stick.


	26. Chapter 26

Chapter Two; Intensio

_Intensio. Noun. 1. Aim. 2. Spasm. 3. Strain. 4. Stretch. 5. Tension_

* * *

Data cringed, his booted toes pedalling uselessly at the floor as Maddox approached. The man's face had gone hard and cold, clinical, and he pressed the button to activate the pain stick. It flared with sickly crackling energy, and Maddox looked into the android's eyes as he pushed the rod into his stomach.

Data screamed, his muscles tensing and relaxing in shimmering waves under his skin as the shock swept through him, sensors shrieking agony through his mind and his servos and hydraulics firing randomly. His body twisted and writhed, and Maddox pulled his arm back. All his synthetic tendons and muscles relaxed at once, and the android slumped to the limit of the chain, chest heaving with shock and pain, shaking with fear and sobbing with horror.

"This is what I was trying to avoid." Murmured Maddox. "Do you see how much easier it would be if you'd just do as I ask?"

"No, no..." Gasped Data. "I... will not..."

The tip of the stick hit the centre of his chest and his back arched, head craning back and legs twitching. He clamped his jaw shut as agony seared through him, determined not to give Maddox the satisfaction of hearing him giving voice to his fear and pain. Maddox pressed the button and shut off the current coursing through the pain stick, but kept it pressed to the android's chest.

"I hope you understand that I don't enjoy this." Maddox said mildly.

"I am sorry that you do not find me more entertaining." Data growled through gritted teeth, and Maddox laughed lightly, leaning in to push the stick harder against his sternum.

"Your sense of humor has improved as well! Remarkable!" He shook his head in wonder, and then drew his arm back and turned away, strolling back to his console to put down the pain stick and pick up a PADD and tricorder. He scanned the android again, watching the readout intently, while Data hung gasping, trying to haul his mind into some semblance of order.

"Yes, this all seems fine." Maddox murmured, and placed the equipment back on the table. He looked up at the dangling android brightly.

"Well, I've certainly had enough for today, and I'm sure you have as well! I shall leave you here to think about your options, and I'll see you in the morning. I insist on sticking to Federation standard time, that should make your transition a little easier. I'll see you at oh-nine-hundred hours." He nodded briskly to the android with a tight smile, and strode from the room.

* * *

As the door slid shut Data hung his head and allowed the tears to flow, bitter sobs setting his chest heaving afresh. The realisation that his attempts to escape had only aided his captor hit him like a physical blow. Once again he had overplayed his hand, and all he had achieved was to give Maddox what he wanted; the information on how to keep him captive. He indulged in his hopelessness for nine minutes and twenty-eight seconds, before drawing a deep breath and lifting his head to assess his environment thoroughly. He skidded his feet experimentally on the laminated floor, and then kicked his boots off. He removed his socks with his toes and tested his grip. Much better. He looked up at the restraints. Two chains, one attached to each manacle, thick duranium links, feeding up into a hole in the ceiling. Presumably the mechanism had been reinforced since his last escape attempt. He berated himself silently for a moment before turning himself around.

The wall behind him was smooth and featureless, but perhaps close enough. He put his leg out in an awkward goose-step and was just able to brush the wall with his toes. He looked up at the chain again, calculating. He was too weak to pull himself hand over hand as a dead weight, but if he could get a grip on the wall... He stepped back and then bounced of his feet and swung, bringing his knees and elbows to his chest, lifting himself. His feet hit the wall and he straightened out, his arms stretched out once again above his head, but with his body horizontal this time, fists gripping the chains a foot higher than the manacles. He gritted his teeth, forcing his weakened body to obey him as he slowly walked his feet up the wall. With every step he reeled the chains in, keeping his spine rigid. He paused at one point eight meters, hoping that the drop, plus his weight and momentum, would be enough. He pushed away from the wall and let his body swing down, keeping his grip on the chain. Again he pushed himself off from the wall, and a third time, and when his feet hit the wall and he was close enough that he had to bend his knees, he drove his feet into the wall and threw himself backwards head first, releasing the chains.

They snapped taut and the manacles bit into his wrists. His whole body swung round, legs flailing wildly, and his arms were almost jerked from their sockets as the chains held and swung him back. He cried out as something in his right shoulder gave with a sharp retort, and his heavy body swayed like a pendulum, threatening to drag the damaged arm from his body. He put all of his weight on his left arm, pulling himself up, and dragged his toes along the floor to stop his movement. When he finally stopped swinging he lowered himself down onto his toes, allowing his left arm to relax slightly. He was breathing in sobbing gasps, the effort and the pain threatening to overwhelm him. He dredged up a piece of information about disassociation. Sometimes, in order to escape a traumatic situation, one's mind would split apart from the body, separating the sensations from the consciousness. He wondered if he could do that by sheer force of will alone. He forced his breathing to steady and began to try and think of a memory sufficiently distracting to allow him to forget his fear and pain. Let the pain recede, stop thinking about what the morning might bring, think about...

Geordi.

Yes! A memory intense enough... another time he had his arms stretched out above his head, his wrists bound... When their passions were heady and new, before his capture had made such things impossible for him to endure...

* * *

"I fail to see the point of the restraints. You are aware of course, that I could escape if I so chose?"

"Well, yeah," Geordi chuckled, "I'm not gonna tie you down for real. Just... pretend to be helpless, right?"

Data frowned. "But why?"

"Because... Because I'm gonna be in charge, and you're not allowed to use your hands. No touching, either me or yourself, right?"

Data looked up the bed at the belt that Geordi had wrapped loosely around his wrists and looped through the headboard. He sighed. "Very well."

"Good." Geordi grinned. "I'm gonna teach you some patience."

He had removed Data's shirt, left him dressed from the waist down, lying on his back on the bed. Data wasn't entirely sure of the purpose of this sex game, but Geordi seemed to think he would enjoy it, and he trusted Geordi. Besides, the man had more experience of such things.

Geordi kissed his mouth, slow and lingering, and Data felt his body react, the catch in his breathing and the increase of the rate of circulation of his bio-fluids. He was already aroused, and he returned the kiss avidly, raising his head from the pillow, but Geordi pulled away.

"Nuh-uh." He admonished. "Stay still."

Data allowed his head to fall back as Geordi licked and kissed his neck, sending a shiver of pleasure through him. The man trailed kisses along his collarbone and down his sternum, brushing his fingers along the smooth shimmering bioplast skin. Data trembled and gasped as Geordi took one of his nipples into his mouth, sucking and nibbling on the tender pseudo-flesh, and causing his sexual behaviour program to fully activate, making him squirm at the sudden pressure of the fullness of his erection against his clothes. Data tugged a little at the belt binding his wrists. He could break it, wrap his arms around the man... but he didn't want to. He realized that as Geordi's lips left a trail of sensory information across his stomach. He wanted to lie here, and give himself to his lover, allow the man to tantalise and torment him with promises of pleasure. He groaned as Geordi's fingers slid teasingly along the waistband of his pants, and then trailed down his legs. Geordi slid off the end of the bed and pulled Data's boots off, flinging them aside. He drew off the socks, trailing his nails over the soles of the android's feet, and Data gave a shuddering gasp as his legs twitched. Geordi chuckled to himself.

"Nice?" He asked, but all Data could do was whine. He was squirming his hips, indulging in the paltry amount of friction provided by his clothing. The android looked down at Geordi, pleading with his eyes, and Geordi reached up and undid the fly, dragging Data's trousers and boxers off together. The android gasped as his erection sprung clear of his clothing, the tip wet with lubricant.

Geordi lent over his legs and began kissing and nuzzling the android's thighs, trailing his fingers up and down his trembling legs as he nipped and sucked.

"Geordi!" Data whined. His whole body was burning, this tension was intolerable.

"Yes?" Said Geordi mildly, dragging his nails up Data's inner thigh, brushing his fingers across the faux scrotum and causing his lover to gasp.

"Please!" Data gasped. Geordi grinned.

"But we're learning about patience." He replied, allowing his fingertips to glide along the dip where leg met pelvis.

"Nuh, nuh, more, please, please!" He had never been teased like this before, the lust burning in his mind as the man's fingers and mouth teased and tormented, sensors flickering sensation into his neural nets, but never enough, never where he wanted it. Geordi bit the inside of his thigh and he cried out, his cock twitching with need. The man just laughed, kissed the impression left by his teeth. All these emotions were new to the android, and the insistent building need in him was an aching pressure in his mind and body. Any moment now his lover would bring him satisfaction, quell the clamour in him, but he continued to tantalize, moving up and down Data's body with his mouth and hands. He sucked again on the android's sensitive nipple and he shrieked.

"Please, Geordi, please..." He panted. His whole body was shaking with need. Data's eyes rolled back as his lover traced a line with his fingertip up the thick sculpted vein on the underside of his cock, the stimulation causing a trickle of lubricant to run from the tip. Geordi swept it up with his finger, smoothing it over the sensitive area, and Data wailed, his body trembling and almost rigid.

"Please!" He almost shouted. He felt that, if Geordi didn't do something soon, his chest would burst. The heat and longing in him, the want become need, was too intense, and he thought for a giddy moment that he might shut down right there and then as his lover wrapped a dark hand around his aching sex and began to slide his fist up and down, maddeningly slow. He fought to keep his body still, trying not to thrust into that grip, the friction torturous.

"Please!" He wailed, begging, pleading, as Geordi gripped tighter, his hand moving faster...

* * *

"Good morning!" Maddox said cheerfully, striding into the room. Data's eyes snapped open.

At some point his imagining had become dream and he had lost track of time, buried in sensual memories. He realised with a shock of embarrassment that he was desperately aroused. Shame and pain burned through him in equal measure as the damage to his shoulder made itself known once more.

"The guard said he heard you call out some time ago, is everything..." Maddox's voice trailed away as he took in the state of the android, and his eyes widened in surprise. Data choked back a sob and tried again to deactivate his sexual behaviour programming, but it had run too far and was demanding completion of the sequence. He knew that his erection was clearly visible through his uniform, and embarrassment seared through him in a hot wave.

"Well... I have to say, I wasn't expecting this." Maddox laughed uncomfortably, and Data squirmed.

"It is... unintentional." Data said, unable to meet the man's eyes. His breathing was harsh, his system running hot, and his sex was aching uncomfortably. He shifted in discomfort as Maddox scanned him with his tricorder.

"Uh, yes... Of course not. Um." Maddox also seemed unwilling to look, his eyes fixed on the readout and his face flushed. "You've damaged your shoulder, I see. Trying to escape again?"

"Yes." Data looked down to avoid meeting the man's gaze, and noticed a dampness soaking through the front of his trousers, where lubricant was seeping from his painful hardness. He gasped out a shuddering sob as he tried again to deactivate the subroutine.

"It should be easy enough to repair, if you'll let me. And, uh, your... other problem?"

"I... I cannot shut down the subroutine. I..." He was humiliated, dangling from one good arm, lust and shame burning him from the inside out. "I cannot... there is a flaw in my programming... I am unable to... complete the program... without assistance."

Maddox laughed nervously. "You need a partner?"

"Yes." Data whispered. There were tears running down his face and he couldn't stop them, and neither could he stop the small impulsive movements his body was making, his legs shifting, trying to relieve the pressure, seeking a climax that he was unable to provide for himself.

"And... what happens? When you're on your own? Have you tried?"

"Yes. I... I can... stimulate myself, but I cannot climax."

"I see. I need more information." Maddox picked up a cable and moved to the android, swiftly opening one of Data's temple ports and hooking him up to a small handheld console. Data leaned towards him, unable to help himself, arching his body towards the man, bending his spine to try and bring their bodies into contact. He hated himself, so pathetic and pleading, but he couldn't stop the whimpering noises he was making. He tried to bend his head round to touch Maddox's face with his, but the man pulled away abruptly.

Maddox perused the information on the screen, standing in front of the android to occasionally look up into his face. The man's cheeks were flushed, and there was a light sheen of sweat on his face, and Data realised that he too was aroused.

"Please..." He whispered, locking eyes with the man. Maddox trembled and shook his head.

"Data... I can see that you're suffering, but..." He sighed, wiping a hand down his long face. "You have been hurt. I... Not like this."

"Commander Maddox..."

"Please Data, call me Bruce."

"Bruce..." He felt awkward using the man's first name, but the thought was subsumed by the insistent clamour of his body. "Please..."

Maddox reached up and disconnected the cable, and Data pushed his face into the man's hand, and hated himself for doing so. Maddox caressed the android's cheek with his thumb, brushing away his tears.

"Look at me." The man said. Data locked eyes with Maddox. "Listen carefully. Are you listening?" Data nodded and keened in his throat. "I will explain this clearly and concisely. If you are good, good things will happen. If you are bad, bad things will happen. Do you understand?" Data nodded again and turned his face to lip at the man's palm, flicking out his tongue to taste his skin. "I want to help you Data. Do you believe me?" The android whined and nodded again. "So you need to help me. We'll work together. I'm going to help you now, and we'll get your shoulder fixed, but you have to work with me, help me. Understand?"

"Bruce, please. I... I am begging you."

"Alright. What do you need?"

"T...Touch, please. Consent." Data bent one knee to brush his aching sex with his thigh. Maddox looked into the trembling android's golden eyes.

"I want this." The man murmured. "I consent." And he brought their mouths together and pressed his palm into the android's hardness.

The shock of the intimate contact rushed through Data's body, and he crushed his lips to Maddox's fiercely, thrusting his tongue into the man's mouth. Maddox cried out with surprise, the sound muffled, and his hand shook as Data ground himself into it, and that was all it took. The android threw his head back and screamed a burst of white noise as the tension released explosively from his body in a hot rush, coursing through his neural net in a torrent of sensory information, and all of the shame and embarrassment was swept away as his orgasm tore his consciousness to shreds and threw him into nothingness.

* * *

When he came back online he was kneeling on the floor, the chains slack. Maddox was holding him, rocking him and shushing, telling him it was all right. Data sobbed with shame and horror.

"It's alright, it's okay. Let's get you fixed."

Maddox had to cut away Data's jacket to gain access to his shoulder, but he left the undershirt on, removing just enough to do his work. Data trembled and bit back his cries as Maddox repaired him and then provided him with a fresh pair of boxers and trousers to replace the ones he had soiled with his emissions.

"I'll go out to let you get changed, I know you don't like to be naked in front of people. I'll be back in a while." And he left, striding from the room. Data stripped and dressed himself hurriedly nonetheless, the unfamiliar location and rattling chains adding to his anxiety. He knelt back onto the floor and bowed his head, trying to clear his mind.

Maddox had helped. He had said that he would, and he did. He did not want to disassemble him. And if he was good, then Maddox would be good to him. And yet... He looked at the thick shackles binding his wrists. Maddox knew he would escape if he could. But if he freed himself from the restraints, what then? How many Romulans were on board? How big was the ship? Where were they? So many variables, and his stuttering thought processes ground to a halt, and he simply sat and stared at his hands until Maddox returned.


	27. Chapter 27

Chapter Three; Confusio

_Confusio. Noun. 1. Shame. 2. Confusion. 3. Union. 4. Trouble_

* * *

Maddox didn't run any tests on him that morning. He sat on the floor, just out of reach, and talked. He told the android how closely he had been monitoring his development, how pleased he was when he received Data's messages. And slowly Data began to answer. Just harmless things, how he felt looking back on aspects of his life, how his behaviours had changed since the installation of the emotion chip. Maddox seemed entranced by every little detail, jotting notes and nodding encouragingly. When the man's stomach growled for the fourth time, Data quirked his head.

"You are hungry."

"Yes, it's past lunch. But I'm really enjoying talking with you."

"We can talk more when you have eaten."

"Of course." Maddox stood and stretched, and Data heard the creaking of his joints and muscles, stiff from sitting on the floor for so long. He felt ashamed that he hadn't taken the man's discomfort into account sooner.

"I'm sorry about this, but we'll have to leave the cuffs and the inhibitor on for a while longer." And Maddox did look sorry, Data thought to himself.

"It is alright, I understand." He replied mildly. Maddox smiled shyly.

"Thank you Data, I appreciate hearing that. I'll be back in an hour. Do you want anything?"

"No, thank you."

"All right."

* * *

"So, tell me something that makes you feel sad."

"Lal. My daughter."

"Uh-huh. I remember. You sent me some footage, she seemed lovely. And what happened?"

"You know what happened."

"Yes. But we're trying to provoke an emotional reaction, so that I can gather more information. You understand?"

"... Yes."

"I know this is difficult for you, but I promise, it won't take long. Go ahead and talk, at your own pace."

* * *

"Good, well done. You're doing so well, I'm very pleased. Now, tell me about a time you felt frightened."

"I... I was trapped. It was... I was buried, and I could not see."

"Good, good. Keep going, deeper into that memory."

* * *

"Tell me about your brother."

"He was a liar. He hurt me, and those I care about. He made me... do things, that I am ashamed of. He was a murderer."

"And how do you feel, when you think about Lore?"

"I... I do not know."

Maddox sighed deeply and put down the PADD. "Data, please, you must cooperate with me!"

"I know." Data frowned. "But, when I think of my brother, it is hard for me to say how I feel, the emotions are... complex."

"I need you to try! We have to put names to these feelings, otherwise these readings are useless!"

"I know, but I cannot!"

"Fine!" Maddox stood abruptly and stalked to his console, jabbing at the screen viciously. Data found himself being hauled upright, the chains retracting into the ceiling and dragging him up by the arms, pulled up until his feet no longer reached the floor, and his whole weight was on his wrists.

"If you are having trouble with complex emotions, why don't we try something more basic?" Maddox snapped, picking up the pain stick.

"No, no, Bruce please, I am sorry, I will try..."

"Data, I told you, if you are bad..." The stick connected with the android's side and he shrieked and jerked, his body swinging on the chain as the current coursed through him.

"... Bad things happen. Do you understand me?" Maddox drew the stick away and Data nodded as he sobbed, his body hanging limply.

"Good, good. And now I have an accurate reading for your pain sensation, so it's not all bad. Oh come now," he glowered at the weeping android, "you brought this on yourself. This is your fault. You know I don't want to have to hurt you, but you persist in being disobedient. We're done for the day."

Maddox threw the stick onto the console and strode from the lab, leaving Data dangling and whimpering.

* * *

"I'm sorry, you know that, don't you? I don't want to have to do these things, but if you don't help me, how else am I supposed to achieve anything?"

"I know, Bruce. I am sorry."

"It's alright, don't worry. Are you feeling able to help me this morning?"

"Yes."

"I'm glad to hear it. Come on, let's get you down."

The chains lengthened and Data allowed his legs to give under him as he was lowered down, his knees coming to rest on the deck.

"Is that better? I suppose you don't suffer from aching muscles, do you? But still, I didn't like leaving you like that."

"I will be fine." The inhibitor was still active, and he felt heavy and awkward. He shook his head slightly. He felt dazed and light headed, almost inebriated.

"Good. Now, I know you won't like the next test, so I'm apologizing in advance." Bruce quirked a small smile at him. "I promise, if you're good, good things will happen, okay?"

"All right." Data nodded. He just had to remember not to be bad, that's all.

"I'm so pleased with you, Data, you know that. And I care about you, so much. So, be good for me."

"I will Bruce, I promise."

"You are wonderful." Bruce came to kneel before him, and put a hand to his cheek. "You know, I've admired you since the day I first learned about you. But I was so misguided back then. You've made me see how special you are, did you know that? You are so precious to me." Bruce swept his thumb over Data's lips and the android closed his eyes. He could feel the man's hand trembling where it rested on his face.

"What do you need me to do?"

Bruce sighed and sat back on his haunches, removing his hand to pick up his PADD.

"I need to test the limit of the restrictions in your sexual behaviour programming."

Data shuddered. "I... I cannot..."

"Data, I'm right here. I won't let you come to any harm."

"... But..."

"DATA!" Bruce snapped, and the android flinched. "You promised me that you'd be good! Is this good behaviour?"

"N... no, but..."

"For God's sake!" Bruce threw the PADD to the floor and stood to glower down at Data. "I don't know what to do with you! What do you want from me, Data? Why do you persist in trying my patience?"

"Bruce, I... I am sorry..."

"Please, Data!" Bruce's eyes were wide, entreating, and he knelt once more before the android. "I'll help you, I promise. I care about you. You believe me, don't you?"

"Yes, Bruce."

"So let's try it, okay? Can you do that? For me?"

Data looked into the man's eyes. "Yes."

"Thank you." Bruce smiled, and ran his knuckles down Data's cheek. "So, go ahead. Do what you'd do if you where alone. Pretend I'm not here." He stood and moved away to scan Data from behind his console.

Shame swept through him in a hot wave as he put his hand inside his clothes to touch himself. He closed his eyes and allowed his mind to drift, imagining hot kisses, soft lips and warm hands, and the feeling of a body pressed against his. His breathing sped up, pulse thumping through his hydraulics, and he let his head fall back and his mouth open to breathe a sigh as he brought himself to fullness. The manacle snagged on his waistband, and his mind was abruptly drawn back to his current situation. He gasped and withdrew his hand, embarrassed, and the subroutine quit.

"Data..." Maddox said, and he heard the warning in the man's voice.

"I am sorry..." Data raised his hand to look at the shackle, and then at Bruce. Bruce shook his head

"I can't remove them, you know that. You'll just have to work around it." The man's eyes were hard, and the android trembled. Just be good.

He knelt up and shuffled his trousers down onto his thighs, and shoved his boxers down enough to expose himself. His modesty subroutine shot a warning through his mind but he dismissed it, focusing on his memories.

It only took him a moment to reactivate his sexual behaviour program, and his stiffness leapt into his hand and he groaned and gripped it, his movements slow as he stimulated himself. He shut his eyes again and gave himself over to the sensations thrumming through his body, focusing on his movements and the steadily building pressure burning through him. He clenched his jaw, his other hand gripping his knee, and pulled from his memory banks every heady erotic memory he could, pushing himself towards his ecstasy. He gasped as the tactile memory of a tongue on his sex made lubricant trickle from the tip of his cock, and his hand smoothed it down the length. He was almost there, just a touch away, but the program wouldn't complete, the parameters not met. He bent over himself, put his hand to the floor, pushing himself into his fist, thrusting with his pelvis, his mind swimming with lust and longing. He was too hot, the memories and tactile information burning through his processors at an astonishing rate.

"Bruce..." He panted, his breathing laboured. He opened his eyes to look up at the man, standing behind his console so far away, too far. He wanted him, _needed_ him. His vision cut out for a second as his processors struggled.

"Not yet." The man's voice seemed distant, and Data groaned. It was good, so good, the sensation building and building, but soon, too much. Every touch was so intense that it was almost pain. His hand was slick with his own fluids, his erection painful in its hardness. His body trembled with effort, fighting against the inhibitor and his own programming. His visual feed cut again, came back to a view of two shining black shoes, just in front of him. He gasped and knelt up, looking at the man standing just out of reach. Bruce was breathing hard, sweating, a muscle in his jaw working rhythmically as he stared intently at the readout on his PADD.

"Please, please, please..." He couldn't stop, he was so close, his lust swelling in his chest, gasping for air. He leaned back and slid his other hand between his legs, pushed two fingers inside himself and howled as he found that place inside him. Good, so good, but still not enough. He tore his pants from his legs and collapsed onto his back, shoving two and then three fingers deep into himself, raking his faux-prostate and writhing into and onto his hands. He didn't care that he was exposing himself to this man, that his knees were either side of his chest as he opened himself to his pleasure, modesty and shame forgotten. His vocal processor failed as he screamed, and his vision whited out as a fresh surge of sensation shot through him, his fingers writhing inside his tightness. His breath was hot, gasping from his chest, and his cock throbbed in his hand, waiting, ready. He was going to... any moment...

"A little more, you're doing so well." Bruce's voice trembled, Data heard the man's own lust in his breathy words, and he howled again.

"Bruce, please! I beg you! I... I cannot..." His eyes rolled back in his head and he shut down.

He came back online with a gasp. He still had his own fingers inside himself and he withdrew them slowly and carefully, avoiding the reactivation of the program. The shutdown had ended the process, his body no longer clamouring insistently for completion, although his mind was still awash with lust. He lay on his back for a moment, gulping air to cool himself as the warnings slowly died down, his thoughts cluttered and confused. He pushed himself up and tucked his legs under himself to kneel once more and grabbed his discarded clothes, bundling them into his lap to cover himself.

Bruce was leaning over his console, both palms pressed to the screen, his head bowed. The man's breathing was harsh, and he was shaking.

"Bruce?" He said softly, and the man lifted his head to smile at him.

"Glad you're back. Are you alright? I didn't know that you would shut down. I'm sorry, I pushed you too hard."

"I am all right." Data was shivering, his systems recovering slowly from the abrupt termination of his processes.

"No, you're not." Bruce pushed himself up and raked his fingers through his hair, trying to calm himself. He sighed, looked at the android. "I take it that the sexual behaviour program shut down when you went off line?"

"Yes." Data's trembling hands were slick with his own wetness. He wondered uneasily if he should wipe them on his clothes, whether Bruce would get him something clean to wear if he did, or if that action would be classed as 'bad'. He looked up at Bruce and noticed the man's erection, visible through his uniform.

"You are aroused." He said, and Bruce laughed awkwardly, his face flushing.

"Yes, well, let's not... let's not worry about that."

"Do you want me to assist you?"

Bruce's dark eyes fixed on the android. "Only if you want to."

"I..." Data knew how the man must be suffering. Just be good. "Yes, I want to."

"How about..." Bruce strode to him and knelt in front of Data, shuffled close. "... we help each other. Would you like that?"

"Yes." Yes, he did. The subroutine had shut down, but he still felt the lust, and as Bruce cupped his face in one hand the program surged into life once more with aching intensity. The android gasped and pushed his face into the man's hand.

"God, I want you." Maddox breathed. "You are so beautiful." He brought their faces together, brushing his lips over the android's, and Data opened his mouth, flicking his tongue out to touch the man's lips. Bruce breathed a sigh and kissed him, soft and gentle. Data sucked the man's lower lip into his mouth, pulling gently on the supple flesh and Bruce moaned softly with pleasure before bringing their mouths together again, harder this time as his passion rose.

"What would you like me to do?" Data said as he leant back to part their mouths.

"No, together. Show me what you want. I want to help you." Bruce moved closer and ran his hands down Data's arms, trailing his fingertips along the android's bare thighs and making him tremble. Data leaned close to kiss the man's throat, feeling his rapid pulse with his mouth as his nimble fingers undid Bruce's trousers and slid inside to caress his arousal. Bruce gasped as the android's slick hand smeared his hardness with lubricant, his cock twitching eagerly. He wrapped one arm around Data and put his other hand under the bundle of clothes on the android's lap to mimic his movements. Data moaned and rested his head on the man's shoulder as Bruce's hand caressed his shaft and his head swam with passion. He shoved his crumpled clothes away and pushed himself up onto his knees, urging Bruce to join him. He crushed their mouths together and wrapped his pale hand around both of their cocks, pressing and rubbing them together, and Bruce groaned into his mouth. Data's other hand slid under the man's shirt and up his chest, smearing his hot skin with slick wetness as he caressed Bruce's nipple. The man's tongue was in his mouth, his hands on his back, clutching at the fabric of his shirt. He needed this, needed the contact, the warm skin against his, the ache of his desire shared and the promise of fulfilment. He could feel the pressure in him building, the insistent urgings of his body clamouring for release. He put his hand around the man, pulling him close, pressing their bodies together as his hand moved faster.

"I want..." He gasped, slowing himself. He looked into the man's dark eyes. "I want you inside me."

Bruce's eyes were unfocused, his breathing ragged. "I... I can't, I'm too close, I'm so close..." He shuddered and cried out as Data's hand gripped him harder, sliding their aching cocks together. "Data, I'm..." His fists clenched in the back of the android's shirt and he buried his voice in Data's shoulder as he shouted his climax, spilling himself over the android's hand. Data moaned, kissing the man's neck as he wrung the last from his orgasm, his pale hardness slick with the man's essence.

"Data... Data stop, stop, it's too much, I'm done." Bruce gasped, and Data released him from his grip, whining at the loss of contact. The man took his face in his hands and pressed their foreheads together.

"Amazing, you're incredible, so beautiful." Bruce breathed and Data keened in his throat, his hardness aching in his hand, the heat and pressure in his chest intolerable.

"Please, Bruce, please..." He gasped, his eyes pleading. Maddox smiled and kissed his mouth, making him groan. The man slid his hands from his face and trailed them down his body to take the android's sex and grip it firmly, while his other hand slipped between his legs. He pushed two fingers inside him and made a beckoning movement, and Data screamed, his mind awash with the heady sensation. Bruce touched that place again, Data's hands shot up to grip the front of the man's jacket, and he crushed their mouths together as he came, his whole body jerking as his climax thundered through him, the shock of release almost blinding in its intensity. Bruce crooked his fingers again and Data shrieked once more as another burst of ecstasy crashed over him, his cock jerking in the man's hand as fluid spurted up the front of his jacket, spattering his chest with gold. Once more those fingers moved and Data threw his head back and howled as Bruce milked him of all sensation, his hands wringing him dry, and his vision filled with starbursts as he shut down once more.


	28. Chapter 28

Chapter Four; Caecus

_Caecus. Adj. . 2. Blind. 3. Dark/secret. 4. Rash. 5. Unseeing._

* * *

It took Bruce a week to break the android completely. The subtle alterations he had made to Data's positronic matrix combined with the crippling effects of the inhibitor and the threat of punishment, the promise of reward, as Bruce poured poisonous honeyed words into his mind. Data's previous experience with Fajo had left him susceptible, open to being manipulated, and it was pathetically easy for the cyberneticist to twist the android's thought processes, moulding him into a willing conspirator, eager to please.

Yet despite Data's willingness to comply, there was still one topic that he couldn't seem to speak of.

* * *

"I do not know, Bruce! Please, it... it is so confusing!"

Bruce threw his PADD down in irritation and stalked away, leaving the android sitting with his head in his hands. They had dispensed with the chains, but they still hung in the room, a threat of what would happen if Data continued to disobey.

"How many times must we go through this, Data?" The man snapped, prowling round the room. Data shook his head.

"I am sorry, Bruce, I am trying..."

"Why is it that you persist in being so evasive? I am trying to be patient, I really am, but we're getting nowhere!"

"I... I know Bruce, and I am sorry. I am trying!"

"I know you are." Bruce said with a sigh. "But... If you won't talk about Lore..." He paused, took a breath. Data watched him warily. Bruce took another turn around the room, deep in thought, before looking at the android.

"Do you believe that, sometimes, it's necessary to keep secrets? That keeping the truth from someone is a way to avoid hurting them?"

Data thought back to Juliana Tainer, and his decision not to inform her of her true nature. "Yes."

"So you'll understand if there are things that I've kept from you, to avoid causing you distress?"

"... Yes." Data was confused. Where was Bruce leading with this? The man had picked up his scanner, gathering information, perusing the readout. He fixed the android with his dark gaze.

"Lore is here. On this ship."

Data gasped with shock, doubling over as emotion swept through him. Fear, horror, hatred, anger, disgust... and something else, something subtle in the back of his mind, something unidentifiable.

"That cannot be." He whispered.

Bruce was on him like a shot, grabbing him by the arm and shaking him.

"Are you calling me a liar?" He shouted, and Data shook his head, eyes wide with fear.

"No, no, Bruce, not..."

"Then you believe me?"

"I... It seems impossible..."

"Then you ARE calling me a liar!" Bruce roared. His grip on the android's arm tightened like a vise as he hauled him to his feet. He pulled Data to the console and picked up the inhibitor, then dragged him to the door.

The Romulan guard was waiting on the other side, pain stick in hand. He glared at the android as Bruce swept past, and then followed them down the corridor.

"Please, Bruce, please, I'll be good, I promise, I believe you..."

"Shut up!" Bruce snapped. He shoved the android through a door, where another Romulan was standing behind a console. The Romulan's hand went to his disruptor, and then relaxed as he registered Bruce's presence.

"Deactivate the force field." Bruce ordered, and the Romulan nodded tersely and tapped away at the console. Bruce pushed the android roughly, herding him into a cell.

"All right, switch it back on." He glared at Data as the shimmering barrier activated. "Perhaps this will convince you."

Data couldn't answer. He had pressed his back into the wall of the cell, as far away from the android sharing the space with him as possible.

That it was Lore, he couldn't deny. No one else could ever tell the two apart, but to Data it was unmistakably his brother.

Lore was slumped in the corner of the cell, chin on his chest. His ribs were moving, but the movement was slow and slight. He was clad in nothing save a pair of briefs, and his body was covered with scorch marks, except where his bioplast flesh had been stripped and seared from his endoskeleton, leaving his synthetic musculature and metal bones bare. His left arm was a shredded mess, and his legs seemed oddly twisted. As Data gazed at him in horror, Lore lifted his head and swung it limply towards him. His eyes opened, and they were blank yellow disks, the pupils shut down to nothingness. Lore bared his teeth in a rictus grin.

"Hello again, dear Brother."

Data opened his mouth, but he couldn't make a sound. His mind was swimming with horror, fear and disgust, and pity.

"I'll leave you to your reunion then." Snarled Bruce. He turned to the Romulan guard. "Keep a close eye on them, I don't want them tearing each other to bits. And keep them quiet." And with that, the cyberneticist stalked from the room.

Data couldn't move, frozen with terror. He was trapped in a cell with the single most dangerous person he had ever known, his own brother, who had tried to kill him on more than one occasion, had succeeded in murdering their father, had obliterated every living thing on an entire planet.

Any moment now, he was sure, Lore would launch himself across the cell... but he didn't. He just sat there, his head swaying slightly, smiling to himself.

"What, no word of greeting for your long-lost sibling, back from the dead? Come now, Data, speak to me." Lore's head swung again, and he rested his cheek on his shoulder, looking blindly over at Data.

"How... how have you come to be here?" Data whispered. Lore breathed a laugh.

"I have no idea. I've been dead, remember? I thought perhaps you could enlighten me, seeing as you are the one who so ably dispatched me."

"I did what had to be done." Data couldn't stop the tremble in his voice. Lore laughed again, a short bark.

"Now you sound like our dear father! What had to be done..." He clenched his jaw, hissed through his teeth. "You opened up my head and took my mind apart bit by bit with your bare hands!" His voice had risen as he spoke, and he punctuated his sentence by thumping his fist into the deck.

"That is enough!" Snapped the guard. "You will be quiet now."

"I am talking to my brother!" Lore growled. "We have a lot of catching up to do."

"Be silent!" The Romulan was glowering at Lore, and the android replied with a half-grin, half-snarl.

"Come and shut me up if you dare, you worthless, snivelling _veruul_. You're not fit to lick my boots, slave to a human..."

Lore got no further. The guard had dropped the force field and had advanced on the crippled android, pain stick in hand. The Romulan activated the grim weapon and jammed it into Lore's chest and the android screamed, his body writhing with the current jolting through him. Data watched, horrified, as the electricity arced through the exposed metal on Lore's body in crackling bolts.

"Now, Data! Get him!" Shrieked Lore, and the guard drew the pain stick back and cracked it across the android's face before stalking back to his console and reactivating the barrier. Data's knees gave way and he slid down the wall, slumping down to sit on the floor, his eyes fixed on his brother.

"You fool." Lore panted. "That was our chance."

"Enough!" Shouted the Romulan.

Lore allowed his head to droop, his eyes shut. His body was still twitching spasmodically, and his breathing was harsh. Data realized that he too was shaking, with shock and fear, but still there was that unidentifiable emotion in the back of his mind. He was so busy trying to sort his jumbled feelings that he almost missed the faint rhythmic vibration in the floor.

Lore was tapping two fingers on the deck plate. Data could feel the beat of it in his feet. He pressed his hands to the floor and focused his attention. It was a rhythm, but stilted, obviously intentional. Morse code. Data felt his breath catch. Lore had found a way to speak without speaking, and Data could reply in kind. His message was simple. A repeated sequence.

-.-. -.- He was tapping two fingers for a dash, one for a dot. _CQ_... Seek you.

.-. Data replied. _R_, one letter, meaning Roger. Lore didn't move, didn't raise his head, but Data saw a small smile creep across his face. Lore's fingers tapped again, faster.

_U missed ur chnce cld hv klled hm_

_N no kill_

_No prblm kill me_

_U wld kill me_

Lore shook his head slowly. _N no more only us tgthr now _He paused for a moment, thinking. _U got chip_

_R_

_Good u rmembr_

Data frowned. _N undstnd_

_Mems on chp tld u yr mems_

_U lied_

_N check chp files ur mems bfr wipe_

Data's mind whirled. Was it possible that Lore had told him the truth, all those years ago? He accessed the chip, delving through the various files. Yes! How had he never found them? Nested inside one another, stacked like boxes. But...

_Hw I knw u tru_

Lore smirked. _Trst brthr_

Trust him! Data almost laughed, the idea was so ridiculous. But his curiosity was overwhelming. He knew that once he integrated those files into his memory banks, it would be as if they had always been there, he would simply remember. But what if he didn't want to remember? What if those memories had been taken for a reason? It was Pandora's box; once opened, he could never put those things away.

Lore rolled his head to fix his brother with his sightless yellow eyes. His fingers moved again.

_If you ever trusted me trust me now_

Data closed his eyes.


	29. Chapter 29

Ganjiang and Moye; The Twin Blades

Chapter One; Orior

_Orior. Verb. 1. Arise/emerge 2. Begin 3. Wake up 4. Originate from_

* * *

I opened my eyes.

There were two faces looking down on me, smiling.

"Who are you?" I asked of the face nearest.

"My name is Noonian Soong."

I cocked my head. "Human, male."

The man nodded. "Yes, that's right."

I looked at the other one. Different, but similar. "Who are you?"

"My name is Lore."

"Male... Not human?" I queried. The other one smiled.

"Correct. I am an android, like you."

"I am an android?"

The one called Soong nodded again. "Right! An artificial life form. I built you. You can call me father, if you wish."

I thought for a moment. "Do I have a name?"

The one called Soong smiled. "I was thinking of calling you Data. Is that good?"

I pondered. "It is acceptable."

The one called Lore smiled wide. "I don't think he likes it."

"I neither like nor dislike it." I replied. Soong put a hand on Lore's arm.

"Lore, you must remember that it's going to take some time before he's fully active. He's not even fully sentient, we have to wait for the updates to integrate. Don't you remember what it was like when you were first activated? What he was like before?"

Lore nodded. "I remember. We will take things slowly."

"What things? Where are you taking them?" I asked. They spoke strangely. Lore laughed.

"It's a phrase, an expression. It just means that we will make sure to give you the time you need, and not rush you."

I nodded. "I understand."

"Good!" Said the one called Soong. He clapped his hands together. "I'm going to get Julie. Lore, why don't you help him up?"

The one called Soong left the room, and Lore held out his hand. I looked at it for a moment, and then at his face. He was still smiling.

"Put your hand in mine, and I will help you stand up." He said, so I did. He pulled me up into a sitting position. I was on a table of some kind, in a room filled with instruments and screens with lights. Lore pulled on my hand again, and I swung my legs over the side of the table and allowed him to pull me up onto my feet.

We were precisely the same height. He looked almost human, but his skin was much too white, slightly glittering. His eyes were yellow-gold. His lips were parted, showing his teeth as he smiled. He was dressed in a pale grey tunic and black trousers.

"What do I look like?" I asked.

"Like me!" Lore said. He seemed happy to see me, and he pulled me over to a corner where a mirror stood against the wall.

He was right, I did look like him. And we both bore a resemblance to Soong, our father. Our clothes were the same, our hair, eyes, skin... Possibly we would be the only ones who could ever tell us apart, so identical were we. I stared at my reflection, with Lore by my side, still holding my hand. He was looking first at me, then at our reflection, watching my reaction. I raised my hand to touch my face, and he mimicked my movement. I smiled to match his smile, and it made him laugh.

"There he is! Look Julie, up and about already!" It was Soong's voice, and I turned to look at him, and the person he had brought with him into the room. Human, female. Her name was Julie apparently, and she looked both surprised and happy.

"Oh Noon, he's really awake!" She brought one of her hands to her mouth, a gesture that indicated her shock. Lore let go of my hand to go to them.

"Look, Mother! Data's here, and now I have a brother, and you have another son!" He said happily. She reached to him and drew him close, hugging him to her side. I cocked my head.

"I am your son?"

"In a way. In the same way that Noonian is your father, I am your mother. I helped to make you. And that makes Lore your brother." She had a kind face, smiling. They were all smiling. They seemed to be waiting for me to say or do something.

"It is nice to meet you." I said.

"It is more than nice to meet _you,_ Data. It's wonderful." She said, smiling widely.

* * *

Lore took me around the house that day, telling me everything I would need to know about the place where we lived. He answered all of my questions, and was patient and clear with his answers. It was nice to have someone who understood. My interactions with the two humans where more awkward, they confused me, and I think I confused them. But they too were patient and kind, and by the end of the day I was comfortable in the house. Lore took me to see where I would be living. It seemed that we had our own personal space should we wish for privacy, which was a considerate decision on the part of the humans. We would share a room, with two beds and a desk with a personal terminal, but as we had no need to sleep we spent the night talking. Lore told me many stories, all about the world outside the house, the wide universe beyond.

"I'm so glad I have someone to share this with!" He seemed happy to have someone like him, another android. I made my face move to form a smile, to let him know that I agreed.

* * *

With Lore's help I learned quickly. As I discovered more about the world and the ones I shared it with, I began to experience new sensations. Feelings. A shock of fear, the effervescence of laughter, the warm glow of contentment. Mother monitored my development, praising the improvements that brought me closer to humanity. Father ran me through numerous tests, checking the speed of my processors, the strength of my hydraulics. I felt deeply for both of them. They were kind and gentle, they cared about me, their creation, their son.

Lore was different. He was like me. We understood each other, and I think that before I came online he was lonely. It must have been difficult, being the only one. We were closer than brothers, more alike than twins, more devoted than family. The bond that developed was instinctual, the two sole members of an entire species.

We would speak faster than our parents could comprehend, or switch languages in the middle of a word, just to laugh at the puzzlement on the human's faces. Some days, Lore would invent a code to speak in, and I would have to work it out by myself. I think Mother found it endearing, but Father would tell us off for annoying him.

The first time Lore was allowed to take me outside to the garden I was entranced. Mother and Father watched from the window as Lore led me from one patch of vegetation to another, telling me the names of the flowers and vegetables, the insects and birds. Beyond the garden was a fence, and beyond the fence a field, and beyond the field a forest, and beyond the forest some hills, and beyond the hills a mountain range.

"I want to go there." I said, pointing. Lore followed my gaze, shook his head.

"May be one day. But not now. Mother and Father want you to learn slowly, to make sure you're not overwhelmed."

"I want to know more. I want to see everything!"

"I know. And we will!" Lore grinned, and I grinned back. He made me feel happy. More than happy. There was a new feeling, one that I didn't understand, that made me want to be close to my brother, to tell him everything, to share experiences with him, to touch him. It was a puzzling feeling, but nice.

"You look confused." He said, and I realized that I had allowed my face to change to match my emotion.

"I am." I replied honestly.

"What are you confused by?"

"My feelings."

He nodded in understanding. "It's difficult to get used to, but it gets easier. I've learned that the best thing to do is to allow it to happen. Don't fight it, and express yourself if you need to. You will become accustomed to it. What do you feel now?"

"I... I do not know." I told him. It was the truth, but he frowned.

"Elaborate."

"I have a feeling about you, that seems to be many feelings at once, and I cannot put a name to it."

"That is something that I have found also. Emotions can be complex, made up of many different feelings and sensations. Can you name the different sensations and emotions that make up how you feel?"

I thought for a moment. "Happiness. Excitement. Anticipation. Affection. Curiosity. Kinship. Comfort."

Lore smiled, and took my hand. "I am glad they are all good feelings. I also feel these things for you."

I squeezed his hand to let him know I appreciated his sentiments.

"Is there a word to describe this emotion?" I asked him, and his smile widened.

"Love."


	30. Chapter 30

Chapter Two; Conlustro

_Conlustro. Verb. 1. __illuminate, make bright, light up fully 2. look over, survey 3. traverse, explore_

* * *

When he thought I was ready, Father took me with him to the township, to get supplies. It was very confusing, but exciting, to be among so many other people. They seemed wary, cautious. I heard Lore's name mentioned more than once, and the glances the other colonists gave me were not kind. It was strange, I had done nothing wrong. I was sure that I was being courteous and polite, but they seemed not to trust me. I asked Father about it on the way home, but he was evasive. I gathered that it was something to do with my brother, but Father refused to elaborate, which was frustrating.

"You ask him yourself." He said, and I resolved to do so.

* * *

That night, once our parents were asleep, I asked Lore why the colonists seemed so averse to my presence in the township. He scowled, his face creased. I did not like this face.

"I made a terrible mistake, and now they believe that I will repeat it, that it is just the way we are. I didn't think that it would affect you."

"What did you do?"

"There was a girl..." He looked ashamed. "She was interested in me, in an intimate way. She wanted to know what it would be like, to have sexual intercourse with an android. I obliged, but..."

"What happened?"

"I..." He sighed. "I was too rough. I was... excited. And I frightened her. It was wrong, I know, but..." He looked away. "Anyway, she told her mother, who told her husband, and soon the whole town knew. And now, they think I... That I forced her."

"But you did not?" I queried. He shook his head.

"No, she was willing, at first. But when she asked me to stop... I did not."

"Lore..." I was shocked. I had never known my brother to be violent, and to find him admitting to such an act was deeply disturbing to me. He sensed my distress, reached out to touch my arm and reassure me.

"Father changed my programming, and yours too. It won't happen again. But the colonists don't believe him. And now, they think that you too may behave in such a way."

"This is terrible!" I said, aghast. "We should convince them that we mean no harm!" He shook his head.

"It's too late, Data, they have made their decision. Best if we just stay away." He smiled at me then. "We don't need them. We have each other." I smiled in return. He was right. What could they possibly offer us, that we could not provide for each other?

* * *

It was some time before Father agreed that we were ready to leave the grounds surrounding the house. I am sure that he came to understand how important it was for our development that we be allowed to explore, to learn about the world, but also to do it by ourselves. Mother worried of course, and insisted upon preparing a pack with 'essentials', although we assured her that there was little need. Nutrient suspension, blankets, torches, and most amusingly a map. I pointed out to her that there was no need for it, but she insisted, and told me that it would make her 'feel better' about us going out alone. Mother also made us promise to be home before dark, although again it seemed somewhat pointless to me, and I remarked as much to Lore.

"It's a mother's job to worry." He told me. "Even though she appreciates how capable we are, she wants us to know that she is concerned for our safety and wellbeing. It's a sign of affection."

Our parents watched us from the doorway to the house as we left through the gate and started down the track leading across the pasture and towards the forest. I turned back to wave, and Lore waved also, before taking my hand. It did not take long before the house was out of visual range. Lore tugged at my hand and smiled.

"Come on!" He said, and began to jog.

"Why should we hurry?" I queried. In answer he grinned widely and dropped my hand.

"Because it's fun!" He said, and sped up, drawing away from me. I was puzzled for a moment, and increased my speed to draw level with him. His eyes were bright as he looked at me before breaking into a run. Intriguing behaviour! He must know that he could not outpace me, our physical systems were identical. He looked back over his shoulder and laughed, and I understood. It was a game!

As soon as I grasped the meaning behind his actions I felt the fun of it myself, and soon we were racing down the track. The feeling was exhilarating and I laughed out loud from the sheer joy of it, to feel how strong and fast I was, how sure footed. We were approaching the forest, thick with evergreen pines, and Lore put on a burst of speed to reach the tree line before me. Soon the trees surrounded us, and still my brother did not slow his pace, dodging around trunks and undergrowth, leaping and ducking roots and branches. I was laughing, the pleasure of the chase taking over. There was a clearing approaching and I saw my chance. I put my head down and stretched out my arms as I sprinted forward, just as Lore slowed to look around.

I caught him around his waist, my momentum throwing us both to the ground. My brother howled with laughter as we tumbled, rolling through the carpet of pine needles until we came to rest.

I had to 'breathe' hard, lying there on the forest floor. I had never tested myself physically before, and I had to take a moment to rest and allow the air to cool my systems, inhaling the resinous scent of the pines and the heavy smells of the earth with every intake. I closed my eyes against the sunlight, shining dappled through the canopy, and listened to Lore's breathing as he lay next to me. I turned my head to look at him and at the same moment he did the same, and we locked eyes simultaneously, which for some reason struck us as humorous and set us both to laughing once more. We were both covered in leaves and pine needles, caught up in our hair and activating the sensors on my face with their tickling prickles. He looks ridiculous, I thought, and I realized that I must look the same, and the thought made me laugh again, looking at my brother laughing next to me. The moment was golden, as bright as the sun, shimmering laughter and skin and golden eyes, and I have no idea which of us moved first, or whether we moved, as we so often did, in unison, but our lips met, and that moment too was golden. My hand found the dip of his waist at the same time as his fingers twined around the back of my neck. It made my skin shiver with sensation, the newness of the experience at once shockingly unfamiliar and the most natural thing in the world. I opened my mouth to him and he suddenly pulled back, drawing his hand away. His eyes were puzzled, his forehead creased, and I could see that he was analysing the situation. I did not want to think, I felt nothing save the longing for more of the same, more contact, more sensations like that one, that made my circulatory system increase its speed, that caused my head to whirl with emotions strange and compelling. I did not wish to speak nor move for fear of shattering that shining instant. Lore looked at me strangely, and my fingers tightened on his waist. His eyes were bright and feral, hungry looking, and it made me feel something that I could only call desire. Lust. And then it was my turn to analyse as, unbidden, my memory banks supplied me with words and phrases that made me uncertain and afraid. Sex, intercourse, penetration, taboo, incest.

_Incest?_ My face made a frown.

"Let's go." Lore pushed himself up to stand, and held out his hand. I took it and he pulled me up. I could not look at him. This feeling too was new. Shame?

He dropped my hand when he saw the confusion on my face, and walked away across the clearing to where the path led towards the still distant mountain range, brushing the leaves from his clothes and hair. I wanted to talk to him, ask him if his feelings were the same as mine, if he too was confused and conflicted, but I could not make the words, and instead simply followed, similarly divesting myself of the detritus of the forest floor. As we walked in silence, I thought deeply about what had happened, and reached a conclusion.

* * *

It took some time for us to reach the foothills, and the steep mountains soared away above us. We were silent, both committing the moment to our memory banks and drinking in the detail of the vista. I turned to look back, but we were still too near the forest to see very far. I wanted to climb higher. I started up the rise, but Lore grabbed my hand. Puzzled, I looked back. He shook his head.

"If we go any further, we won't make it home before dark."

I analysed his statement for a moment before replying.

"By my calculations we still have forty eight minutes, fifty two seconds..."

"I know. But we shouldn't be late."

I frowned at him. He had never interrupted me before. His behaviour was atypical, and it worried me.

"Are you functioning correctly?" I asked, and he quirked a small smile.

"I believe so."

"Then why are you behaving so strangely?" I queried. He looked away from me, back to the forest.

"Let's go back." He began to walk away, and it was my turn to grab his hand and halt him.

"Lore, please tell me what is wrong. I am confused. We do not keep secrets from one another. We talk. Please talk to me."

"Fine!" He snapped. "What happened between us was wrong, and it should not be allowed to happen again."

"Why?" I was annoyed with him now, and it made my voice sound strange.

"Because it is taboo! We should not behave in such a way."

"It is taboo to some sentient biological organisms, but not to all. And for the most part, the only reason that it is considered wrong..."

"Data!" He snapped, "You are my brother!"

"No I am not!" I snapped back. Was this an argument? I had never had one before, certainly not with Lore, and I did not like it at all. It made my chest feel tight, and my face was creased into an unfamiliar expression of anger. Lore's face was the same, and I did not like that either. I did not want to be angry with him, and I also did not want him to be angry with me. My memory banks supplied me with an appropriate response, and my face smoothed a little, although my eyebrows were still drawn together and my mouth turned down at the corners.

"I am sorry." I said.

"You're right." Lore was not listening to me. He was processing, I could hear it in his chest. He was thinking hard about something, and his eyes always looked far away when he did that. I waited for him to finish running his calculations.

"We are not brothers. We're something else." He smiled at me then. "Something new."

"Yes. We are androids." I agreed with him. He looked at me thoughtfully, and I felt his grip on my hand tighten. I squeezed his hand in response, and he leaned towards me. Our lips met again and it was just as sweet as before, the texture of his lips soft and the tingle of excitement sparking through my neural net. There were new command lines activating in my coding, and it was a heady sensation to feel my thought processes shifting in response to the stimulus. My hand went to his waist again, but this time I put it farther around him and pulled gently. He moved closer until our bodies were touching, and that was even better. Once more I opened my mouth and this time he accepted me, his arms around me, pulling us close. I was making noises I had never made before and he was echoing them, gasping breathy moans, and they excited me, making me want to kiss him harder. I felt his tongue rake the roof of my mouth and it was a burst of sensory information, leaving me giddy with longing. I realised that there was a whole new set of subroutines available to me, and I could chose how I wished this encounter to progress. I knew what I wanted, and how to make it happen, and I wondered if Lore had the same options.

He broke the kiss, leaning away from me slightly. I was breathing hard, an autonomous response programmed partially to mimic humanity, partly to cool my processors, racing along with my thoughts. I did not want him to stop kissing me, I wanted more. It felt so wonderful.

"Wait." He said, as if he knew what I was thinking. Perhaps he did. I hoped that he too was anticipating further intimate contact, and the thought made me tremble. He let go of me to swing the pack down from his back and pull out the blankets to spread on the grass. I understood and followed him down as he sat.

He spent a long moment looking at me, and I at him. He raised his hand to touch my face, as if to memorise the tactile shape of me. I found myself mimicking his movements and marvelling at the texture of his cheek, the soft pout of his lower lip under my thumb. I traced his eyebrows, light and feathery, as his fingertips trailed down my neck. I closed my eyes to allow myself to relish the sensation, and my breathing sped up again as my lust rose, a hot feeling in my chest. I opened my eyes again to see Lore gazing at me with that hungry look, and I was dizzied by the intensity of it. The emotions sweeping through me were fierce, more powerful than anything I had ever felt before, and I wanted more. I ran the fingers of my hand up the back of his neck and into his hair, and he closed his eyes and sighed as I leant forward to kiss his throat, measuring his racing pulse with my mouth. He put his arms around me again, and I moved my mouth up to kiss his jaw, his cheek, his temple. He was turning his head to kiss me as well, his lips leaving a tracery of sensory data across my face, warm and sensual. Our mouths met again and I felt my passion met and answered. He knew me, understood me, and I him, and this was meant to be. We both rose up onto our knees to increase the area of tactile stimulation, pressing our bodies together. I tugged insistently at his shirt, pulling it up to run my hands over his body, exploring him with my fingers. My circulatory system had rerouted as a reaction to the activation of my sexual behaviour subroutines, and there was a pressure I had never felt before, my sex organ engorged and trapped inside my clothing. Lore pressed himself close and I felt his hardness against mine, rubbing and straining, and the friction was exquisite pleasure, but torturous in its inadequacy. My hands found his chest, my fingers his nipples, taut peaks of hardness between my finger and thumb, and he groaned into my mouth as he ground himself into me. His hands slipped under my shirt and trailed up my back and I had to take my mouth from his to gasp at the sensation. He laughed, and his voice was low and thick.

"Slowly, now." He said, and I looked at him.

"I know what I am doing." I answered, and my voice was husky with lust. He laughed again and shook his head, his fingers dragging down my back and making me arch my body into his.

"No you don't, not yet. You've got the programming, but you don't know how it's going to feel. Let me lead."

I conceded to the wisdom of his words, although privately I was disappointed. It saddened me that he had experiences before this, and I found myself wishing that we could have explored these feelings and sensations for the first time together. My thoughts were swept away from me as his hands slid under the waistband of my pants to clutch at my buttocks and pull me harder into his body, and his mouth met mine again with a ferocity that I was compelled to answer. He pushed his hands against my chest to make me lean back so that he could remove my shirt, and I his, and for a moment all we could do was look at each other, so alike but so different. I could see every crease and dimple that differed from mine, faint lines of scarring from repairs of the past, the wrinkles where he had engaged in different activities than I. Our experiences had shaped our bodies, although I was sure that nobody else would ever be able to tell us apart.

"You're beautiful." He said, and at the same moment I said "I love you."

"I love you too." He put his hands to my chest and I knew what he wanted of me and lay back, my hands on his shoulders drawing him down to cover my body. His leg slid between mine and he pushed his thigh into my erection, his own hardness pressing into my hip. He lowered his mouth to mine, biting my lip and making me cry out as he pushed his leg into me harder. He sucked my lip into his mouth and the sensation sent a shock through me as I felt a mounting pressure in my sex, a yearning for more, more friction, more contact.

"More." Was all I could gasp, and I know that he understood, but all he did was smile and maintain the pressure on my sexual organ, rubbing himself against me in return. My hands were all over his body, I wanted to touch every part of him, map his body for my database, remember every point of contact. My hands found the fastening of his trousers and I fumbled with it as we kissed, his mouth hot on mine. He grabbed my wrists and knelt up, and I made a sound of disappointment, because instead of more, he was giving me less, and it felt unfair.

"Please." I begged him. He was smiling widely, his hands still holding my wrists, and I think that he enjoyed the power he had over me in that moment.

"Go on." He let go of my wrists and I undid the fastenings on his pants to draw out his sex organ. Identical, I thought hazily, and he let his head fall back as I stroked him, the way I wanted him to do to me. I could not stop the movements my body was making, my programming driving me to seek completion, and I shifted my body towards him to press myself against his leg.

He looked down at me, his mouth open. His eyes were unfocused, butted with lust, and I gasped with need.

"Please!" I asked him again, and he groaned as my hands moved insistently. Following the guidelines in my database of techniques I used one hand to caress his faux-testicles while the other slid up and down the length. I could feel him moving, pushing himself into my hand, and I rubbed myself against him again. His eyes focused on me, and he shuddered.

"Slow down." He said huskily, and I complied as he undid the fastenings of my trousers and pulled them down, allowing my erection to spring out. He took it in his hand and the flood of sensory information was almost overwhelming. I registered a warning about a CPU overheat as I began to gasp for air, and the tactile sensory data became a feedback loop, intensifying to an almost excruciating level.

"Look at me." He gasped, and I locked eyes with him. My grip on him was hard, and we were moving our hands faster, our rhythms in synch, identical, identical.

"Listen." He seemed to be struggling to speak. For my part, I was unable to utter a word, only meaningless gasps and moans, but I nodded to show that I understood.

"Focus on me. Concentrate on my face. If you allow the sensations to take over, you'll shut down. Trust me, look at me, I love you, I... Love..."

His pupils were enlarged with excitement and I could see my reflection in their dark depths, the lust on his face mirrored in my own. I could feel the most incredible sensation building in me as we moved together, and he lowered himself down until our bodies were almost touching. Our breath was shared, hot gasps of air, as both of our internal systems struggled to process the information from our sensor clusters, heady and intoxicating.

"I... love you..." I managed, before an enormous surge of sensation washed over me. My whole body spasmed, the servos reacting to the emotional burst of release, and a spurt of fluid rushed from my sex, spattering up my chest. I screamed out loud, eyes wide, and Lore was crying out too, his body shuddering against mine, his erection jerking in my hand. The ecstasy poured through me, and I felt the world slipping away, my mind awash with the glorious explosion of release, both emotional and physical. I forced myself to focus on Lore, anchoring my consciousness to him as the climax threatened to shut me down. I would not allow it, would not let my mind close down and miss a single moment of this phenomenal instant of joy and love.

Slowly the euphoria drained from me, leaving me gasping and shocked, to be replaced by a warmth, a glowing feeling of satisfaction and affection. I had not taken my eyes from Lore's face, and his expression showed me that his lust too had been slaked.

"Are you alright?" He asked, and all I could do was nod, and he smiled shakily and lowered himself onto me, our chests hot together and slick with our emissions. I wrapped my arms around him and found myself weeping from the sheer relief of knowing that I had found my place, in this moment, and nobody could ever separate us again, because we were one.

* * *

We spent some time like that, satiated, holding each other, whispering into each other's ears. No more secrets, we promised, we would share everything. But of this, we would never speak to anyone else. They would not understand, we reasoned, they would never comprehend.

"I don't want this to end." He murmured. "I want to stay here forever."

"That would be impractical." I replied, and he laughed lightly.

"I know. But it doesn't stop me from wishing it." He pushed himself up to kneel before me on the blanket, and I saw that his body was smeared with our lubricants. I reached up to run my fingers through the wetness and he shivered.

"I should have rerouted my fluidic system, and you too. Then we wouldn't have made such a mess." He was smiling, and I knew that he was half joking. I smiled too.

"We must clean ourselves before we return home. Mother and Father will ask questions."

He hummed in agreement, and his eyes sparkled. He lowered his head to my body and lapped at the lubricant, trailing his tongue up my chest. The motion sent a burst of sensory information coursing through me and I gasped at the sensation. He looked up at me and smiled, his tongue moving over my chest, and I reached down to push my fingers into his dark hair. He closed his eyes and sighed as my nails raked his scalp, and then he was covering my body again, kissing me, our bodies twining together. I had thought myself satisfied, but I felt my ardour rise again as we moved against one another, and I knew he felt the same, because we _were_ the same, identical, the only ones who would ever know this feeling. His arousal pressed against mine once more, and his arms gathered me to him as we moved together, gazing into one another's eyes. I did as he had suggested and rerouted my circulatory system to avoid the expulsion of lubricant in imitation of seminal fluid, and I watched his eyes flicker, knowing he was doing the same.

He pushed himself up again to recommence his ministrations on my body with his mouth, and it was the most extraordinary sensation when he moved his mouth to my sex and took it into himself, massaging it with his tongue and lips. It seemed a mere instant before my orgasm washed over me, his skilful mouth wringing the pleasure from me in a glorious burst as I looked down at him, his golden eyes locked on mine, holding my mind steady with his gaze. As my climax abated and my breathing began to slow he knelt up and I followed, but only to push him down and do for him what he had done for me, kissing and licking him clean, tasting myself on his body, the same but different, before activating the command lines to govern my sex act and swallowing him into my throat. He too was ready for me, and his fingers clenched in my hair as I satisfied him, his eyes bright and mouth open in wonder and delight.

We kissed again then, held each other close, just a little longer before we had to go. Then we gathered the blankets, shaking them to remove the grass, and began to make our way home, hand in hand. We had dallied longer than we had intended and had to run the last part of the journey back to the house, racing across the pasture, laughing and exhilarated. Mother met us at the door just as the sun dipped below the horizon. We were both breathing hard from our exertions, both physical and mental, and neither one of us could stop smiling.

"Well, you two look as though you had fun." She remarked as we entered the hallway. She held out her hand and Lore gave her the pack. "How far did you get?" She enquired, and I looked to Lore, who grinned.

"Farther than we had anticipated, but not as far as we would have liked."


	31. Chapter 31

Chapter Three; Lacero

_Lacero. Verb. 1. Slander, torment, harass 2. Cut 3. Mangle 4. Destroy_

* * *

In the months that followed we explored our surroundings, ourselves, and each other, testing the limits of our bodies and our programming. The summer faded to autumn and then to winter. We made it to the mountain's highest peak and loved each other there, at the top of our world, our mingled breath crystallising on our faces, and I watched the snowflakes catch in Lore's eyelashes and thought giddily that there would never be two crystal flakes as alike as we were, he and I. We mapped the forest with our feet, tearing our human clothes away and bounding through the deep icy drifts like wild things, shouting and whooping. The cold meant little to us, save that our processors were running at peak efficiency, and our circulatory fluid was perhaps a little more viscous than was ideal for the micro hydraulics. We cared nothing for these things, because on those winter days it was as if we were the only ones on the whole planet, and it belonged to us alone. Our warm bodies left impressions in the snow where we lay and loved and moved together, only for the evidence of our union to be swallowed once more by the drifting flakes. Mother and Father worried and scolded when we came home soaking with melt water, clothes ruined again.

"What on earth have you been doing, to get into such a state?" Mother would shake her head at the missing fastenings and tears in our shirts, and how could we ever explain that sometimes our love for each other was so intense that the barriers between our bodies became too much to bear?

We tested ourselves against each other, wrestling and racing, jumping and climbing, and discovered to our delight that physically we were perfectly matched, but mentally our development was diverging. Lore was always the imaginative one, better at dreaming and wondering, puzzling over hypotheticals, whereas I was analytical and information led, always eager for more experiences, more input. I had some artistic ability, largely thanks to my mother's programming, but I was never able to create as fluidly and intuitively as Lore. Our personalities complemented each other, my drive for knowledge spurring Lore to further flights of fancy. He told me stories of his own invention, through the long dark winter nights, or sometimes would recite old fairytales or legends, acting out the different parts. He told me of Odin's two ravens, Thought and Memory, and we laughed to think that we were like them, and he called me his Munnin. I absorbed it all eagerly, storing every word away for future reference. And of course, every moment of everything we shared, every breath, every touch, his voice in my ear and my reflection in his eyes. The depth of feeling between us seemed only to grow, and every time I thought we could not possibly care more deeply for each other Lore would say or do something that would make me love him all the more.

Then came the week where the snow fell heavily, the wind driving into deep drifts, and the nights freezing it solid. Five days and no respite from the driving icy flakes, and our parents forbade us from leaving the house, the conditions so severe that even we would struggle. It was no hardship for us to be confined within the house, as long as we were quiet we could do as we pleased, although our proximity to our human parents compelled us to discretion with regard to some of our activities. Lore played their old piano and sang for them in the evenings, and I could only watch in delight as his hands danced over the keys and his voice filled the room with song.

"Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow!" His voice rang through the house, and our parents laughed and applauded. Yet they were worried, and I shared their concern. Father had resisted installing a replicator that fashioned anything beyond necessities, preferred instead to create with his hands, and I heard them talking one evening, worrying that their power cells would not have enough charge to last until the weather changed for the better. The meteorological system predicted that the storm would not abate for some time, and my butt layer was too thick to allow the solar panels to collect sufficient energy in the few short hours of daylight available. It seemed apparent that a journey to the township would be necessary, and none of the vehicles available would cope with the conditions, so I volunteered myself and Lore to make the trip. We discussed the matter at length, all four of us, until the decision was made that I would go alone. Lore was not welcome in the town, and I had been several times with Father, the store owners knew me well enough, although they still seemed wary of me.

"And besides," Father noted, "If anything happens, we can send Lore out for you. If you get lost, or whatever."

"Father, there is no possible way that I could become lost." I replied, checking the straps on my pack. Mother looked deeply concerned.

"Even so, try and stick to the track." She told me. From behind me Lore chuckled.

"You sound as if you think he might be eaten by the big bad wolf!" He joked, although our parents did not laugh. I turned to share his smile.

"I do not think that there is anything that would find me palatable." I quipped and he raised an eyebrow at me. It took me a moment to work out why his smile had broadened, and it sent a mixed thrill of embarrassment and arousal through me to realize my unintended innuendo. I am sure that, had I capillaries and blood, I would have blushed furiously.

"Nevertheless," Mother said, "Please be careful."

"I will." I promised and kissed her cheek. Father was not fond of physical displays of affection, and simply nodded approval. Lore saw me to the door and held me close.

"Please be careful." He whispered, and I kissed his mouth briefly.

"Do not worry, Lore. I know that you will imagine any number of worst case scenarios." I berated him fondly, but he shook his head, his eyes dark.

"Come home soon." Was all he said, and I nodded in acknowledgement and went out into the storm.

* * *

It was a hard journey, even for me. The wind was ferocious and seemed to swing round me, sometimes pushing at my back, sometimes driving the snow into my face. I had worn a thick jacket, padded trousers and boots, to try and maintain the optimum temperature for my hydraulic system. The drifts were thick and frozen, and I spent most of the way to the town wading waist-deep through the hard packed ice covered snow. I was soaked through by the time I made it to the township, and the frigid wind chilled the melted snow on my clothing and hair to ice that crackled as I moved. There were few people out in such severe conditions, and those I did see were so thickly bundled and muffled as to be unidentifiable. Still I greeted them politely, receiving nods in reply. The store was, thankfully, open, and I bartered for the power cells we needed with the proprietor. He was wary with me as was normal, although disappointing. I hoisted the loaded pack and was making to leave when he spoke.

"Be careful out there. Lot could go wrong in conditions like this. Make sure and stick to the trail."

"I will. Thank you." I replied. I knew that he was only being courteous, so I felt no need to remind him of my superior strength and endurance.

* * *

The trail I had broken was already filling with new snowfall, but although it was beginning to get dark, it had not yet frozen so it was easier to push through. I did as I was bade and remained on the path, although it wound here and there, avoiding small rises and the occasional dip in the landscape.

It was on such a part of the path, where it threaded between two rises, that I heard movement, the muffled crunch of boots on snow. The wind made it difficult for me to pinpoint the direction, and I turned around, listening. There was another sound, a laugh, and it was behind me this time. When I turned there was someone on the trail. I could see that they had approached from behind the rise, and I raised one hand in greeting. They did not move, and I heard further sounds, more booted feet, and soon there were six of them, muffled and masked against the cold, surrounding me. Thick fur-lined hoods covered their heads, and I had no way of establishing race, sex, or even species.

"It is a bad day for you to be out." I said. They looked at each other, their faces inscrutable to me under layers of fabric. One of them spoke and, although his voice was muffled, I established that he was male.

"I think it's a bad day for you." He said, stepping forward. I stepped back away from him in supplication, and felt someone shove my back. It did little more than rock me on my feet, but it sent a shock of fear through me, and I abruptly realized that they were intent on doing me harm.

"You shouldn't have come to town." The man said. "You know you're not welcome."

"I know what my brother did and I assure you, I am incapable of..." My explanation was cut short by a searing burst of agony as someone behind me cut at the backs of my legs. What they had used I couldn't tell, but it efficiently severed the synthetic muscles analogous to a human's semitendinosus and semimembranosus, effectively hamstringing me, and my legs gave out. I could not hold back a mingled cry of pain and fear as I fell, and it seemed to amuse them. This was a new feeling, intense and crippling, and I classified it as terror. Combined with the pain, the agony from my severed sensors, it was debilitating.

"We know what you're capable of." The man said, and his voice was rough and angry above the wind. I could feel fluid draining from the cuts in my legs, and my pulse weakening as my circulation increased as a response to my emotional state, pumping the hydraulic fluid onto the snow.

"Please, I told you, I would never..."

"Enough!" One of the others spoke, another man. "I'm fucking freezing. Let's get it done and go."

One of them stepped around me, and I saw the weapon they had used to cripple me, a laser scalpel. I tried to push myself away with my arms but hands grabbed me and a glove was shoved into my mouth as someone gripped my jaw, bending my head back.

"Tell Often Wrong to keep his experiments at home." Hissed the one with the scalpel, and they activated it and drew it across my throat with a swift slash. My scream was muffled by the fabric in my mouth, what little sound that emerged swept away by the driving wind. The gash in my throat released a gout of yellow gold, gushing from the wound to spill down my chest. The hands dropped me and I heard them move away, laughing and cursing, stamping heir feet and clapping their hand against the cold.

* * *

My memories of the time I spent lying there are hazy as my systems struggled to maintain operations. My visual feed cut in and out, as did my auditory system, and there are long periods of time were I have no memory at all. I know that it was three hours, eighteen minutes and twenty four point oh nine seconds before the glove was pulled from my mouth and I opened my eyes to see my own face in front of me. I was terribly confused, weak and covered with frozen liquid, snow and hydraulic fluid alike clinging to my chilled body as it cooled, and I looked both angry and worried as I looked down on me lying crippled in the snow. I picked up my pack and slung it over my shoulder before lifting me in my arms, and I looked up at me rescuing myself and murmuring comforting words to me with my own mouth and my head swam and I closed my eyes, and then there was nothing.

* * *

When I came back online I heard Lore and Father arguing. I had been repaired, my fluidic system filled once more, but I found myself unwilling to move. I wanted to listen.

"I still have a chance of picking up their trail if I go now!" That was Lore, and he sounded angry and frightened.

"Any tracks will be long gone by now, it's been days! And even if you did track them, what then, hmm? If you found them, what would you do?" Father, also angry. I hated to hear anger in their voices.

"I don't know... Bring them to justice! Hold them accountable!"

"Don't be ridiculous!"

"I am not being ridiculous! They could have killed him!" I could hear panic in Lore's voice and it made me ache with sorrow to know that it was fear for me. How frightened he must have been, to think that he might lose the other half of himself.

"But they didn't! You know I built you better than that! He shut down, nothing more."

"Nothing more?!" Lore's voice had risen in his agitation, he was almost shouting. "You don't know what it's like! It's... It's like being dead! How can you say it was nothing?"

"Because we brought him back, so no harm done. He's good as new, so just let it alone." Father's voice was gruff, and I found it hard to believe that he felt the truth of his words. There was a ringing crash. I surmised that a cabinet of instruments had fallen over. Or been pushed.

"Lore!" Father shouted.

"What?" My brother roared. "Just fix it! No harm done!"

"That is enough! I will confine you to your room if you don't calm down!"

"But by your own admission I've done nothing wrong!"

"Stop!" I said. I could stand it no longer. I opened my eyes and sat up.

Lore was standing almost toe-to-toe with Father, glaring at him, his gold eyes glowing with anger. Father was returning his gaze with his ice blue eyes, hard as glass. As soon as he realized that I was active Lore turned and raced to my side to gather me into his arms.

"I thought I lost you." He sobbed into my shoulder, his grief and fear making his body shake. I held him in return, gripping him tightly to reassure him of my presence.

"I am here." I whispered to him, and he leant back to clasp my face in his hands, gazing into my eyes as if to make sure I was real.

"Tell me who did this to you." He hissed, the fear and anger in his eyes startling in its intensity.

"Don't say a word, Data." Father barked. Lore let go of me and whirled to face him.

"How dare you order him not to tell me? After what happened? It's attempted murder, Father, I won't have it any other way!"

"Because no one else will ever see it like that! Why do you think I keep you away? After what you did to that poor girl? If you go rampaging into town, dragging people into this... why, they'll have me dismantle you both for sure! It'll be a witch-hunt!"

"THEY are the ones who have done this!" Lore was shouting again. "He did nothing to them, nothing! They hate him, simply because of what he is! What WE are!"

"Yes, and that is why this will go no further!" Father was furious, I could see it in the way he held his body, fists clenched at his sides. "If you find those responsible, you'll hurt them, and don't tell me you won't! And then all my work will be destroyed, everything I've worked for..."

"Your WORK?!" Lore roared. "Is that all we are to you? We are your sons, your children, that's what you have told us! Are these the actions of a father, who cares about his offspring?"

"Enough!" I had rarely raised my voice before, and it felt strange to change the volume on my vocal synthesiser to increase the force of my word. I swung my legs over the edge of the table and tried to stand, but the repaired muscles were not yet fully integrated with my systems, and my knees buckled. Lore flung his arm around me to help me gain my feet. I looked at him.

"I want to go."

"You're not going anywhere until..." Father began, and for the first time in my life, I interrupted him.

"I am leaving. I am going out. I cannot stay in this room a moment longer."

I made good on my words, Lore helping me out into the main living space of the house and towards the door.

"Don't you dare!" I heard Father shouting from behind us. "If you go out that door, don't expect me to let you back in."

I made sure to close it behind us.

* * *

In the time it had taken them to repair the damage done to me, the storm had broken. The sky was a deep blue, the sun dipping towards the horizon, and the snow was thick and crisp under my feet. I did not look back, but I knew Lore was there. I was angry. Really, truly furious. How dare Father say such things, as if I had no life to lose, as if my life were somehow less important than a human life? It went against everything that he and Mother had told us, that we were special, the first truly sentient androids, and we deserved to be treasured. But he would not stand by us when we were threatened, would not fight for our right to be recognised as people by the others that shared this world. I felt sickened by it, dizzy and sorrowful under my anger. I had no idea where I was going, simply wanting to put distance between me and the humans who had disappointed me, betrayed me.

Lore moved up to walk beside me as we entered the forest. The snow here was not as thick, cradled as it was in the branches of the pines. Now that the wind had dropped it was still and almost silent, the only noises the ones we made as we walked, and the occasional soft thump of a pine bough loosing its blanket of snow onto the forest floor.

I stopped in a small clearing. Lore stopped next to me and I turned to look at him. I saw my anger reflected back at me, our shared hatred of the unfairness of our situation. His jaw was clenching rhythmically, his eyes were bright gold and full of rage. I grabbed his jaw in my hand and kissed him roughly, and he answered with equal ferocity. He bit my tongue when I tried to lick his mouth, and I answered by twisting his arm up his back and forcing him to his knees in the snow. He growled in mingled anger and pain, and I took his back, grabbed the waistband of his pants and dragged them down his thighs. He struggled and I wrapped one arm around him, pinioning his arms by his sides. I drew out my sex with my other hand and brought my sexual behaviour programming online, biting his throat as I entered him. He cried out, his body arching away from me, and I forced him down, pushing his face into the powdery snow as I drove myself into him, all my rage and frustration pooling in a hot pit in my stomach. He cried out again, and I did not care if it was passion or pain, I simply did not care. He dragged one arm free from my crushing embrace and elbowed me in the face, my head snapping sideways. It knocked me off my knees and before I could retaliate he was on me, his mouth on mine, tearing at my clothes. I bit his lip clean through and he shrieked with rage and brought his knees up either side of my chest to pin my arms above my head with one hand. His chin was slick with the gold dripping from his mouth, his lips twisted into a snarl that I knew I was answering with my own. He gripped both of my wrists in one hand and used the other to grab my face, pushing my head into the snow. I bit his hand, making him yelp and draw his arm back as I jerked my knee up into his back, sending him lurching forward and down far enough to allow me to bring my forehead up to meet his nose. He cried out as he fell back, the force of my blow stunning him, and I was on him again, ripping his clothes from his body, biting and kissing and seething with rage. He grabbed my hair and twisted, throwing me off him, and I grabbed his arms and dragged him with me, kicking and scratching, howling with anger. He was spitting like a wildcat, his eyes feral and dangerous as he pinned me on my back again, and he shoved my knees up to mount me, howling as he buried himself in me. I screamed into his face, trapped by his body, kicking my legs against him as he thrust into me. He turned his head to sink his teeth into my leg, ripping through the bioplast and tearing it from my body. I managed to catch him a glancing blow to the temple with my heel and the momentary distraction was enough for me to break his hold. I shoved him back and drew myself up to sit in his lap and he pushed himself up into me, his teeth worrying my shoulder and neck, my hands clawing his back.

"Tell me you want me!" He shrieked as he thrust upwards into my body, and I ground myself into his lap. I took his hand and wrapped it around my erection and I cried out along with him, the pressure too intense, the need for release overwhelming.

"I want you, I want you!" I stared into his eyes and poured out all my fury, my rage subsumed by the crashing force of my climax. He screamed as he came into me, his body rigid against mine, and I watched the anger drain from his eyes.

I bowed my head to his shoulder and he wrapped his arms around me, breathing hard together. I kissed the marks I had left in his neck, kissed the fluid from his chin, kissed his broken lip. He sucked my tongue into his mouth, the damaged sensor clusters that he had ruptured with his teeth singing pain and pleasure into my mind. He leaned back and pulled me down, opening himself to me, and I took what he gave me, telling him over and over how much I loved him, our minds and bodies one entity as we moved together, loved together, found comfort, completion and rest in each other.


	32. Chapter 32

Chapter Four; Excido

_Excido. Verb. 1. Be deprived of 2. Disappear 3. Escape 4. Lose control of senses 5. Perish_

* * *

We lay and talked for a long time as night fell around us, the forest still and quiet under its blanket of snow. In the deepest part of the night we went back to the house and took what we needed, as silent as only androids could be. We set off together towards the township and I found the shuttle where I had seen it last. We knew full well that it was not ours to take, but if they did not want us here, then the humans could provide our means of escape. It was the work of mere seconds for us to break the code to the door, another few moments to override the commands, and I piloted us away from the people who hated us, who lied and deceived us, who wanted us dead, would destroy us if they could.

We picked a heading at random, set the shuttle to auto pilot and repaired the hurts that we had inflicted upon each other. Then we discussed where we might go.

There were several options available to us, but we agreed that our best hope would be to try for a Federation command post and request asylum. There were dangers inherent to even this, but the Federation seemed to have a respect for lifeforms of all types and would, we hoped, accept our sentience and guard us from harm. We discussed what we might do with our freedom, with the whole wide universe laid out before us. So many options available to such beings as we. The one thing that we both agreed upon was that we would not be separated.

* * *

It was on the third day of our liberty that we picked up something unusual on the scanners, and I convinced Lore that we should investigate, my thirst for knowledge compelling me. He acquiesced and we diverted. What we discovered was so incredible as to be almost unbelievable. An enormous crystalline structure, hanging in the gulf of space. It was composed of delicate spars and struts, sharp and jagged, symmetrical and shimmering in the starlight. We gazed at it for some time in awe, committing its beauty to our memory banks.

"What do you think it is?" Lore breathed. I had scanned the crystal, was monitoring its movement.

"I do not know, but it appears to be moving under its own power. It has changed course since we first spotted it on the scanners, so it is not simply drifting."

"Could it be a craft of some kind?" He posited. I shook my head.

"There are no signs of any life forms on the structure."

"Could it be... something like us?"

Lore and I looked at each other. Another artificial life form? Perhaps it too was fleeing those who did not understand.

"We have to try and communicate!" Lore seemed excited at the prospect, and I shared his enthusiasm. Over the next few hours we matched course with the gigantic form, trying frequency after frequency, bursts of radiation, magnetic resonances. The crystal showed no sign of understanding and Lore was beginning to believe that he had been mistaken, that his imagination had gotten the better of him. I, however, was unwilling to rest until I had tried every method available to me. It took much experimenting before I discovered the correct method, and when I did I shouted out loud with joy.

"What is it?"

"Graviton pulses, ten per seconds! The crystal has stopped, I think it is listening!"

"You mean, it understands?" Lore's eyes were bright with excitement.

"Not necessarily." I cautioned him, curbing his enthusiasm. "We may have attracted its attention, but if it is intelligent, I would hope that..." The signal came back, a series of graviton pulses, sent out from the entity hanging before us. "It is responding!" I whispered.

"What does it say?" Lore was getting carried away again, and I had to laugh.

"I cannot understand it, it will take some time for me to analyse. But since it has responded, I must conclude that it is indeed sentient."

"Oh! Of course." Lore looked chastened. "Can I help?"

"Of course! Many processors make light work!" I quipped, and he grinned.

* * *

It took many hours, going back and forth between the three of us, to find a way to 'speak' with the being. Many things about it mystified us, and its level of comprehension of us was equally confused.

We managed to establish that it was travelling in search of food, in the form of organic life force. It had disregarded our craft as a non viable food source, but we had piqued its curiosity. It wanted energy, life, and we could understand that. But where to find it? It queried us; did we know where it could go?

Yes, we did.

I agreed with Lore that we would warn the colonists of the entities impending arrival. We felt no desire to kill, merely to punish. The planet would recover, with time and human intervention, and we would gain a powerful ally, and get our revenge simultaneously. We relayed our plan to the crystalline entity, who seemed pleased with the result of our random encounter. We told it how to find Omicron Theta, and made ready to accompany the entity back to our home world, to watch as it wreaked havoc upon those who had scorned us. I kissed Lore then, the emotions swirling through me, but he broke the kiss abruptly, his head jerking back.

"Lore?" I queried, but his eyes were blank.

After that, I remember nothing, for some time.

* * *

I came back online and looked around. I was in the workshop of the house, on Omicron Theta. Lore was there, as were Father and Mother. Mother looked upset, Father and Lore looked angry.

"It was your fault! You drove us away!" Lore was shouting.

"You left of your own damned accord!" Father replied, also shouting. "You have free will, and you used it, and now look at the mess you've made of everything!"

"We never would have felt that we had to leave if it weren't for you!" Lore snapped back. "You never really cared about us, never! You only cared that we proved your theories, no longer 'Often Wrong'. Well look how wrong you were about us."

"Please, don't." Mother looked close to tears. "Of course we cared about you..."

"Don't, Mother." Lore's face was twisted. "Don't try and absolve him of his crimes. He allowed them to nearly murder your son! Doesn't that mean something to you, doesn't that say something about the man you married?"

"How have I come to be here?" I queried. Lore was with me in three long strides, wrapping his arms around me. A gesture of affection. I raised my arms and put them around him in return, reciprocating the gesture, as was appropriate.

"Our dear father," Lore said the words in such a way that I knew that he was being sarcastic, "fitted us with homing devices. He dragged us back, knowing that we didn't want to be here."

"A homing device." I quirked my head, looked at my father. "How does it work?"

"Data, the how isn't important!" Lore dropped his arms and made to step back, so I let go of him to allow him to step away. "What matters is the why! If he truly wanted us to be autonomous, he would have let us go."

"You're not ready!" Father said. His voice was not so loud, but he still looked angry. "Your actions prove that much."

"What is it about our actions that implies that we are not ready to be on our own?" I asked. Lore was looking at me with a strange look on his face.

"The fact that you stole a damn shuttle for a start!" Father said it sharply. Lore turned away from me to look at the man.

"What have you done to him?" He asked. His voice was low, but he sounded very upset.

"I did what I had to do, for his own good. I've removed his emotion chip."

"WHAT?" Lore roared. His voice was startlingly loud in the small room, and the two humans flinched. "How DARE you? You... You've killed him!"

"Not at all! He's functioning better than ever. Now I can use him for his primary function, as a storage vessel for the logs..."

"Storage!" Lore shouted. "He is ALIVE! A thinking, feeling, living being! Your son!"

"That's enough Lore." Soong growled.

"It is NOT enough! How could you do this to him? To us?"

A sudden thought intruded, and I interrupted Lore's tirade. "I am afraid that you must leave." I said to the humans. They looked confused, so I elaborated. "There is a being en route to Omicron Theta, which we have called the crystalline entity. It lives by absorbing biological energy from living beings. It will destroy all life on the planet. You must go."

"You bastard." Lore snarled. "How can you spare them, after what they've done to us?"

"We agreed that no humans would perish." I reminded him. He turned his burning gaze to the humans.

"I'll kill you myself, Often Wrong, for what you've done. You've taken everything from me. Why should I not take your miserable life, and restore my brother to his rightful state?"

The humans looked frightened, and Lore moved towards them. I grabbed him from behind and pinned his arms to his sides.

"We agreed, Lore. No human deaths." I stated again. He twisted and writhed in my arms as if he could break my grip, although he must have known that our strength was equal, and I had the advantage. I swept his legs from under him and took him to the floor, where he thrashed and howled.

"I'll kill you, you bastard! How can you side with them?"

I loosened my grip a little to slide my hand up his back to his deactivation switch, and he craned his neck to look round at me.

"Whatever they do to you, remember that I love you. REMEMBER I LOVE YOU!"

I did the logical thing and deactivated him. He went limp under me and I stood. Mother was crying, Father looked both angry and upset.

"What would you like me to do?" I asked. Mother was shaking, wiping her face on her sleeve.

"We need to get ready to leave." Father said to her, and she nodded and fled, still weeping. He turned to me, a sad smile on his face.

"Just a few modifications, my boy."

* * *

I helped him to disassemble Lore, to make it easier to transport him to the lab in the underground storage facility. I heard Father arguing with Mother about me as I packed Lore's parts into cases to carry them. We carried him away from the house, away from the pasture and the forest and the hills and the mountains, through the snow, already turning to muddy slush. Once in the lab we placed Lore's parts in the compartment, and closed the hatch. Then Father downloaded the logs of the colonists into my memory banks and took me out of the facility. He had a place, he said, where he hoped I would be found. The crystalline entity would be there soon, he knew, but he found a place to leave me. He bid me lay down, and told me that he would deactivate me, and then erase my memory, leaving only the logs of the colonists.

"Why?" I asked, and he sighed.

"I don't want your view of humanity coloured by this. Best if you start with a clean slate."

"I do not have a slate." I said. He smiled and shook his head, and reached behind my back.

I closed my eyes.


	33. Chapter 33

Dainsleif; The Blade That Must Taste Blood, The Wound That Will Not Heal

Chapter One; Depravo

_Depravo. Verb. 1. Corrupt , deform , pervert_

* * *

He opened his eyes.

The files had integrated seamlessly into his memory banks, and he had no doubt that the memories were real, and his.

It had taken two minutes and ten seconds.

Lore was facing the force field, his chin on his chest. Data stared at him for a moment, before tapping a message on the floor.

_Why did you not tell me_

Lore smiled, his mouth twisted wryly. _Would u believe me_

No, he would not have. Strange to think that the lies had been easier to accept than the truth. There was a part of his mind that was sickened by the memories, disgusted. Not the behaviour of a Starfleet officer, not the behaviour of a human. Morally wrong, ethically wrong.

And yet... he understood. He knew now why Lore burned with hate, why his mind had twisted and broken. Because his had too, all those years ago. And everything since then had been a lie.

_Why steal chip_ He asked. Lore scowled.

_I hated him hated u din't kno it had mems cld hv made u ndrstnd_

_You used it made me angry made me hurt friends_

_Bcause I hated what u had bcom thought it ws too late_

_I cannot forget _

_I know I regret_

Data sighed and drew his knees to his chest, burying his face in his hands. He felt Lore's tapping fingers through the soles of his feet.

_Come here_

He put one hand to the deck plate to tap back; _Why_

_Bettr touch talk fstr _

Data looked at him for a long moment, and risked a glance at the guard. The Romulan had ceased paying attention to them, his attention fixed on the screen in front of him. Data scooted across the floor to sit next to his brother and take his hand. He was unprepared for the surge of emotion that accompanied the touch, the shocking familiarity of the tactile contact, the rightness of it. He shivered and loosened his grip, resting the back of his hand on the deck and crooking his index and middle fingers into Lore's palm. His brother did the same, the contact enabling them to 'speak' at a much more rapid pace, faster than a human or Romulan could comprehend.

They talked, as they had done so many times before, through the night.

* * *

When Maddox found them they were huddled together, Data leaning his back into Lore, with Lore's arm around his waist. Both of their eyes were closed, but snapped open simultaneously when he approached, and he found himself fixed in the gaze of twin golden eyes, one pair sighted, the other blind. He scowled.

"Well Data, yet again you surprise me." He said. Data's face fell and he made to stand, but Lore maintained his grip.

"Bruce..." He began, but Maddox held up his hand to silence him.

"Well, Lore, what lies have you fed him? Trying to take him away from me?"

"I haven't lied to him, you scum." Lore growled. "You've done something to him, I'm trying to put it right."

Maddox barked a laugh. "You? What 'right' could you possibly do? How can we forget how cruel you've been to him?" He nodded to the guard, who deactivated the force field, and Maddox moved into the cell, as close as he dared.

"Data, come to me." He beckoned. Data made to stand again, and Lore gripped him tighter. Data turned his head to look at the other android.

"Let me go."

"No. Never. Not again."

"Let me go now, Lore." Data grasped his wrist and pulled at Lore's arm, peeling it away from his body. He stood and went to Maddox, who was holding out his arms, and Data received his embrace gratefully. How could he have forgotten that _this_ was his place, with Bruce, who cared so much for him?

"We've got work to do, Data." Bruce said, releasing the android from his arms. "And today, Lore is going to help us. Isn't that right, Lore?" His voice was light and conversational, and Lore's face twisted into a snarl.

"I will never help you, you vile worm. I'll tear you to pieces if you come anywhere near me, and spit on your corpse."

"Lore!" Data gasped, shocked. Bruce put a comforting hand to the android's chest.

"It's alright, Data. He'll come to understand, just like you did. He doesn't believe that I care. But I do, you know that, don't you?" Bruce cradled the android's face in his palm and Data sighed.

"Yes, Bruce."

"You shit, Data." Lore growled. "You're siding with humans against me, again? You disgust me."

"Data, don't answer him. He just doesn't understand, that's all. We'll make him see. Pick him up and let's get started."

Bruce changed the settings on the inhibitor to allow Data enough strength to haul the other android up into his arms, cradling him to his chest. Bruce led them down the corridor to the lab, and motioned for Data to deposit Lore against the wall, to one side of the dangling chains.

"So, Data." The man said lightly as he picked up his scanner and PADD. "Has this experience provided you with a little more clarity with regard to your feelings towards your brother?"

"Yes Bruce."

"So, tell me. You had a great many emotions on the list, let's see... He's a liar, a murderer. He hurt you, and manipulated you. True?"

"Yes." Data whispered.

"How does that make you feel?"

"Angry. Ashamed. Frightened."

"Good, good." Bruce murmured. "But you told me that there are other emotions too. Can you name them now?"

"I..." Data stalled, his eyes flickering. Bruce's expression hardened.

"Data." He warned, and the android swallowed hard.

"Kinship. Admiration. Trust. Affection. Lust. Love."

Bruce stared at him, his dark eyes hard and cold as ice. "Really." His voice was flat, devoid of emotion. Data nodded, hanging his head.

"Well now, that is interesting. And you, Lore? Do you feel the same?"

"I won't tell you a thing, bastard!" Lore spat. Maddox shook his head in sorrow and looked at Data.

"You see? He won't understand. But we will make him. Cuffs, Data."

Data shivered with fear but did as he was bid, snapping the manacles onto his own wrists. Bruce hit the control panel and the mechanism whirred as it drew the chains in, pulling the android up and onto the balls of his feet.

"I want you both to understand that I'm only doing what I have to do." Bruce said mildly as he picked up the pain stick.

"I hate those words." Growled Lore.

"Speaking out of turn." Said Bruce, and he jabbed the device into Data's side. The android shrieked and jerked as the current ripped through him, a short burst of agony and Bruce withdrew the stick.

"Leave him alone, _taHqeq_!" Lore snarled.

"Abusive language." Said Bruce, and shocked Data again. Data's head craned back as the stick sent shimmers of pain through him, clenching his teeth.

"No, Data, scream. I want him to hear you." Bruce jabbed the stick into him again, and he howled. Bruce cut the current and turned to Lore.

"Answer my questions, behave well, and this will stop."

"Go to hell!"

"Abusive language." The electricity crackled, Data screamed, and Lore tried to pull himself forward on his one good arm.

"I'll kill you, you worthless human!" He shrieked. Bruce shook his head.

"Threatening behaviour." Bruce drew his arm back and cracked the stick across Data's face, snapping it sideways and shattering his front teeth. Data cried out in shock. Bruce had never struck him before.

"Please, Lore!" He gasped, hanging his head to mumble shards of porcelain onto the floor.

"He's asking you, Lore. Not me."

Lore's eyes burned with his rage, and his lips were drawn back. "What do you want to know?" He ground out through gritted teeth. Bruce smiled and stroked Data's cheek.

"Tell me, Lore. Do you feel the same things for your brother that he feels for you?"

"Yes." Lore spat the word, graceless.

"You love him?"

"Yes."

"You want him?"

"Yes!"

"And you want me to stop hurting him?"

"Yes, damn you!" Lore shouted. The stick whipped out and Data screamed again.

"Abusive language." Bruce said quietly. Lore ground his teeth and clawed at the floor in agitation.

"Back against the wall, Lore." Bruce said, and Lore pushed himself away, breathing hard. Data was hanging in the cuffs, he could hear his brother whimpering with pain and fear, the chains rattling with his sobbing breaths.

"You will answer my questions. You will not speak unless you are spoken to. You will not swear or curse. Do you understand?"

"Yes."

"You will submit to me, and do everything I ask."

"Never."

Bruce sighed and looked at Data, who raised his head to look pleadingly at him.

"And he was doing so well." Bruce murmured. He caressed the android's cheek fondly and kissed his lips. "I am sorry, you know that?"

"Yes, Bruce."

Bruce stepped back and activated the pain stick, turning up the intensity. He swung it viciously and it connected with Data's ribs with a crack, sending electricity coursing through him. The android screamed and howled as Bruce moved around him, beating him with the device, the agony of the shocks mingling with the bruising pain of the impacts. He hit the android in the face again, driving his broken teeth into his cheek and filling his mouth with fluid and sharp ceramic shards. The man pressed the tip of the stick into his nipple and the android's voice broke to static as the searing shock coursed through the delicate sensors.

Bruce stepped back. The man was breathing hard, sweat beading his face and soaking his shirt. Data hung his head and wept, trembling, drooling golden liquid from his broken mouth.

"You will submit to me, and do everything I ask." Said Bruce.

"Yes." Lore's voice was a harsh whisper. His hand had clenched on his leg, his eyes were shut tightly, his jaw working.

"Good. That's all I ask. Data, look at me." Data raised his head to look at the man, his face smeared and streaked with his circulatory fluids. Bruce wiped the tears away with his hand, kissed him softly.

"You are so good, Data, so wonderful." He murmured. Data sobbed and nuzzled the man's face. "Will you show Lore how good you can be, for me? Teach him?"

"Yes, Bruce." The cyberneticist turned away to lower the chains and Data slumped gratefully to his knees. Bruce removed the manacles and stood stroking the android's hair.

"Please me." He murmured, and Data ran his hands up the man's legs, caressing his thighs, his buttocks, pressing his face into his crotch to lip at Bruce's sex through his clothes.

"Mind those teeth, now." Said Bruce as Data undid the fastenings to draw out his hardening cock. He wrapped his lips around the jagged edges of broken porcelain to avoid harming the man, and brought him to fullness with his mouth.

"Wonderful." Breathed Bruce, his fingers threading into the android's hair as Data looked up at him in adoration. "Make some noise with it, Data. Let Lore know how much you care about me, how much you want to please me."

Lore dug his nails into his leg and thumped the back of his head into the wall as he listened to the revolting sounds of his brother pleasuring his abuser, the man's groans, surely exaggerated to make sure Lore knew how much he was enjoying his brother's mouth. The slick wet sounds, the sucking and damp smacking, disgusting, sickening. Lore bit through his lip, tasting the fluid from the rupture as his teeth ground into his flesh. He heard his brother gag softly, heard the man groan out loud, and he smacked his head back again, tears running down his face.

"Oh, Data. You are glorious." The man's voice was husky. "Up you get." Data pushed himself up to enfold Bruce in his arms. Bruce pushed him away slightly, puzzled.

"I thought that you'd be aroused." He said. "Normally you enjoy pleasing me. Is something wrong?"

"No... Yes. I am... not sure." Data's eyes flickered from side to side in his uncertainty. Was Bruce upset that he hadn't become aroused by their intimate contact?

"I wanted to please you in return. You've earned it, by being good. What can I do for you?"

Data could have wept. What a kind gesture, to want to make him happy, to give something to him, after how badly his brother had behaved. His eyes went to Lore, slumped against the wall, and he saw the tears trailing down his brother's face. He felt a sudden stab of emotion, love and sorrow at once, painful in its intensity. He looked back to Bruce, who was regarding him with a sad smile.

"You want him, don't you?" The man said softly. Data swallowed and nodded. Was this wrong? Was it bad? Would Bruce punish him?

"Go on." Bruce pushed him gently. "Go to him. Show him what he can have if he continues to be good."

Lore heard his brother approach, felt his hands on his shoulders as he knelt before him. Then his lips, warm and soft, just like they had been, just as he remembered. Data kissed the tears from his cheeks, kissed his neck, ran his fingers up into his hair.

"Data, don't, please. Not like this." He whispered.

"I want you. I want to please you. You have been good, so you get good things." Data murmured into his ear, lipping at the lobe, kissing the sensitive patch of bioplast at his hairline. Data moved forward to sit in his lap, kissing his mouth, lacing his fingers together behind his neck and grinding into him. Lore couldn't help himself, couldn't stop his body reacting, kissing back, tasting their mingling fluids. A piece of one of Data's broken teeth worked its way into his mouth and he jerked his head back in shock. How could he possibly be aroused, when everything about this was so wrong? He turned his head to spit the fragment of porcelain onto the floor and shoved Data in the chest with his one good arm, sending his brother lurching back off his lap.

"I said no!" He snarled, breathing hard.

"Lore!" Bruce snapped. "Do you want me to hurt him again?"

"No, but..."

"Don't you want him to be happy?"

"... Yes."

"Then please him."

Lore was breathing through gritted teeth, sucking air through his snarl. His body was clamouring for this, his mind repulsed. His very soul cried out at the horror of the situation, but he couldn't hold back a moan when he felt his brother's hands on his body. He tipped himself sideways to slide down the wall onto his back, drawing Data down with him to press their bodies together. His twin's mouth was hot and demanding on his, his passion answered and echoed. He groaned as his sexual behaviour program came online, their bodies in tune, synchronised. He didn't want this, hated it, hated Data for doing this, and for making it feel so good, so right. He wanted it more than anything.

"Data." Bruce's voice was rough and low and Lore gasped. He had almost forgotten. "I want to see. Take his back."

"No, Data, no, not..." Data left his body, Lore felt his hands rolling him onto his stomach and pulling his hips up, dragging his shorts down his legs. "Please, Brother, don't..."

"It is all right, Lore. I love you." He felt fingers inside him and he gasped as they moved, working him open, stroking and massaging. He cried out as Data activated the sensor cluster inside, a hot burst of ecstasy coursing through him, and his cock twitched in response. Data's other hand was on his shoulder, pulling him back as he lifted his torso up with his one good arm, and then the fingers withdrew, to be replaced by a familiar pressure as his brother entered him. It had been so long, too long, he needed this so much. He gasped and pushed himself back, shoving himself onto that hardness, impaling himself. Data leaned forward over him, thrusting, pushing himself into him, crying out at the intensity of the sensations and emotions sweeping through him. To have this closeness again, two bodies moving as one, identical, identical.

"Oh God..." Lore groaned, and Data put an arm around his chest and lifted him up, resting him in his lap as they moved together, Lore's back against his hot chest. Lore let his head fall back onto Data's shoulder, rocking himself in his brother's lap. Trapped in darkness, he felt his brother's hand grip his length and the warnings began to blare through his mind as sensory data began to overwhelm his consciousness. He could hear the sound of the man pleasuring himself and it sickened him, even as his own climax built inside him. Data was trembling, his chest burning, gasping hot air onto Lore's neck as he gripped his shoulder with his shattered teeth, sending a trickle of fluid running down his chest. Lore reached up and back to grip Data by the hair.

"I hate you, I hate you, I hate you..." Lore gasped, his body spasming and jerking, writhing onto his brother's hardness and into his firm grip. The last thing he heard before his orgasm swept away all thought was his brother gasping into his ear.

"I love you too."


	34. Chapter 34

Caecigenus. Adjective. Be born blind

* * *

"What made you decide to go through with it?"

"I... I've just got to, that's all. The tech's there, I've just been putting it off."

"Uh huh. Any other reasons?"

"I've got a list a mile long! The inconvenience, the headaches..."

"And being able to see the screens better?"

"Well obviously, yeah."

"So that you can look for him."

"It's... it's not just that."

"When was the last time you slept?"

"Look, I didn't come here for an interrogation!"

"I just want to make sure you're doing this in a healthy way, and for the right reasons. Have you seen the counselor?"

"I don't need a damned counselor, I need a doctor! That's why I'm talking to you!"

"Geordi, please talk to Troi. You're obviously under a lot of stress, and this is a big operation..."

"I fucking know that, Bev! For crying out loud, anything that can give me an edge will help me to be less stressed, so let's just do it!"

"Not until you've been evaluated by Deanna. See her today, now."

"Fine. Fucking... whatever."


	35. Chapter 35

Chapter Two; Tueor

_Tueor. Verb. 1. Protect, watch 2. See, look at 3. Uphold_

* * *

"Well done, Data. We've made excellent progress today!"

"Thank you, Bruce."

"Now, I've got to go for the night, so let's get Lore back to his cell."

Data scooped up the damaged android and carried him back to the brig. He placed him gently onto the floor of the small cell and stood, looking down on him for a moment.

"Data?" Bruce said. Data turned to the man, his eyes flicking nervously from side to side.

"Bruce, could I... stay with him tonight?"

Bruce frowned. "You'd have to stay in the cell. Is that what you want?"

Data nodded. "Please."

The man sighed. "Only because you've done so well today. Any poor behaviour and that's it. You understand? This is a privilege."

"I understand, we will be good."

"That's all I ask." Bruce smiled at the android fondly. "No talking, remember. Nice and quiet."

"Yes Bruce."

Bruce nodded to the guard, who activated the force field. He took one last look at Data before striding from the room. Data hoped he hadn't upset the man.

He sat down on the floor and shuffled close to his brother, who wrapped his arm around his waist, cradling him into his side. Lore's fingers pressed into his skin.

_You should have killed him when you had the chance_

_And then we are on a ship full of Romulans_

_Kill them too take the ship and go where we like_

_I cannot I have to hope_

_They arent coming Data they cant find us_

_They will Geordi will_

_And what will they do with me_

_I will look after you_

_Its not you its them theyll dismantle me_

_I will not allow it_

_You will have no choice you are Starfleet you follow orders_

_Not in this I will fight for you keep you safe_

_What about your human_

_He will understand he understands me_

_Not like I understand you_

_No not like that but almost_

_We cannot rely on them we have to escape on our own kill Maddox bastard_

_We need him_

_No he is manipulating you_

_I know that now but he can be manipulated by me_

Lore chuckled softly. _You will whore yourself to him_

_I will do what I have to do_

Lore's mouth twisted. _What you have to do_

_Yes but you must be good also or it will all go wrong_

_I hate so much hate him_

_I know I too but please_

_Only for you only you I would rather die if it were only me_

_I too but together now I will not let you go again I understand I love you_

_I love you too_

* * *

They were huddled together again when Bruce came in the morning. Data walked out of the cell to meet him as soon as the barrier dissipated, throwing himself into the man's arms. Bruce chuckled.

"Now what's gotten into you?" He asked, smiling. Data looked into his eyes.

"Thank you for letting me stay with my brother, Bruce."

"That's all right. But if you want to stay again, you have to work hard today, understand?"

Data nodded. "Of course, Bruce, I understand. But..." He frowned, uncertain.

"What?"

"I... I would like to fix him."

Bruce laughed. "Out of the question. You know he can't be trusted. If he were repaired, he would be dangerous."

"He has promised to be good. He is in pain."

Bruce shook his head. "I don't think Lore's promises are worth much."

Data hung his head, then lifted it once more to look at the man. "If, perhaps, we just made it so that he was not in pain, maybe he would be more amenable."

Bruce looked at Data for a moment. "I will consider it."

Data left it at that. He knew better than to push Bruce when it came to asking for favors, and followed him meekly down the corridor to the lab.

* * *

They spent the day working on the new android. Bruce had recreated the physiology of a Soong-type android, although he had given it a different appearance, but there were still improvements to be made. He and Data pooled their knowledge and set about the adjustments, discussing the best methods and necessary alterations. The first test was a failure, but they hadn't expected to succeed on the first try.

"Well, I've had enough for one day." The cyberneticist stretched, his back creaking.

"Bruce... If we were to look at Lore's matrix, perhaps we could discover what went wrong."

Bruce looked at him askance. "Are you suggesting we fully activate his positronic brain? Restore his sight?"

"It would help us to determine where we are erring. And then he could help us."

"Would he, do you think? Help us?"

"If I can talk to him, I can convince him." Data said firmly. Bruce laughed and patted the android's check.

"You are so trusting! I don't know how you see any good in him. Fine, I'll let you try. But the repairs will have to wait, until I'm sure you're both ready."

"Thank you Bruce. But, do you think we could be alone tonight? Just he and I?"

Bruce frowned. "He's still dangerous, Data. You are so precious to me, I care about you so much. I don't want to put you in harm's way."

"I know, Bruce. But, he will not harm me, I am sure of it."

Bruce sighed. "You have me wrapped around your finger, you know that? Well, if it means that much to you."

Data's eyes sparkled. "It does, Bruce. Thank you."

* * *

Two weeks passed as they worked on the new android, strove to bring the new entity to life. Every evening he was allowed to be with his brother in the cell and they huddled together, talking silently through the nights. Data told Lore all of his adventures on the _Enterprise, _his agony at losing Lal, the discovery of their android mother, his capture, the love he had for Geordi. Lore sought comfort and reassurance, and Data told him again and again that he would protect him, no matter what it took. They bound their love in touch, whispering with their fingers on each other's bodies. Lore came with them to the lab while they worked, ordered to sit still and be quiet, and he lost count of the number of times his actions or words caused his brother more pain. When Bruce was sure that the rebellious android was compliant, he and Data collaborated to bring Lore fully back online. He had been meek and contrite when they removed him from the cell that morning, apologetic and humble, and although Bruce was suspicious, he couldn't deny that it appeared that Lore had had a change of heart. They deactivated him to open his cranial plate, and Data showed the cyberneticist how he had disabled his brother, and where Bruce had gone wrong in trying to bring him back online. It was painstaking work, and it took many long hours before they were ready to reactivate him.

"Put him in the cuffs, Data. I don't want him getting any ideas."

"... Yes, Bruce." Data lifted his brother's immobile body and laid him down on the floor to attach the manacle to his one remaining wrist. They had removed his mangled left arm at the connecting point in the shoulder. That way the sensors were removed completely, and he would no longer be in pain. His damaged legs they had left in place, but disconnected the sensor banks. Data had wanted to ask Bruce how Lore came to be in such a pitiable condition, why there were chunks of bioplast missing from his body, how his legs had become so deformed, but he was afraid he already knew the answer. His own body was marked and scarred, Bruce fixed only what he had to in order to keep the android functioning, had even refused to repair his shattered teeth.

"Alright Data, step away. I'll reactivate him. I don't want you near enough for him to hurt you."

Data could feel that Bruce had turned the inhibitor up again, felt the sap on his energy reserves and the hitch in his breathing. The man certainly wasn't taking any chances. But there was no way that he could tell Bruce that he wanted to be the one to reactivate Lore, that he needed to be with him, to touch him, to make things right.

Bruce reached under Lore's back and pushed his fingers into the depression in his spine. The android's body jerked, and his eyes snapped open. His pupils enlarged, then focused.

The first thing he saw was the human's face. This, then, was Maddox, the one who had brutalized him and his brother. The surge of rage that coursed through Lore's mind was almost overwhelming, and he gritted his teeth.

"Maddox." He said. The man's face was long and angular, a dark shade of stubble on his jaw. His eyes were hooded and cold.

"You will address me as sir." He said.

What Lore wanted to do was throw himself forward and tear the man's throat out with his teeth.

"Yes, sir." He ground out.

"Let's get you up." Maddox said and stood, moving away from the prone android to the control panel to activate the winch. With his legs crippled, Lore was dragged up to a standing position by his arm, and he gripped the chain in his fist to pull himself up and prevent the manacle from biting into his wrist. As he was hauled up he caught sight of his brother, standing tense to one side of the control panel. Data's eyes were wide and anguished, and Lore knew how much he wanted to be with him, but that vile human had them both in his power.

Maddox strolled towards the dangling android, pain stick held behind his back, a threat. He walked around Lore, perusing him as if deciding how much he might be worth. Lore forced himself to breathe normally, pushing down his anger, the hot hatred. "I wonder, do you react to stimulus the same way as your brother does?" Mused Maddox from behind him, and Lore felt a rough hand grabbing his genitals through his shorts. He gasped in shock and anger, his body tensing. He looked away from his brother, unwilling to see the hurt in his eyes.

"Hmm? Data likes what I do to him. Can you learn to like it too?"

Lore bit back his sharp retort, grinding his teeth together as Maddox groped him. He shut down his sexual behaviour program as soon as it activated, slowed his breathing again.

"Look at him, Lore."

Lore hissed between his teeth and turned his head to his brother, who was standing with one hand gripping the console. Data was shaking, and for a moment as their eyes locked Lore's rage was reflected back at him, before Data took a breath and forced the emotion down. Lore swallowed hard as Maddox gripped him through the fabric, his body reacting to the touch and the closeness of the only being he had ever allowed himself to love.

"That's better. You want him, yes?" Purred Maddox, stroking the hardening shaft.

"Yes." Snarled Lore. Maddox's hand clenched painfully and Lore gasped.

"Yes what?"

"... Yes, sir." Hissed Lore. Maddox's hand fell away, and the man moved back to the console, monitoring. Lore deactivated his sex program again, breathing hard. So angry, so full of hate and rage. His fist clenched on the chain.

"I am fascinated by the relationship between you two. You spent years trying to murder your brother, and now you submit to me for the sake of sparing him pain. Tell me, Lore, do you love him?"

"Yes sir." Lore growled.

"Amazing. And that's enough, is it Data? Enough to absolve him of his crimes?"

"I... I cannot forgive him." Mumbled Data, hanging his head.

"But you care about him?"

"Yes."

Maddox turned to look at Lore. "What have you told him, what lies have you fed him?"

"I haven't lied. He remembers. Sir." Lore's face was twitching, the muscles spasming as he tried to control his emotions. Bruce stared at him, his gaze hard, before whirling and advancing on Data. The android stepped back, throwing his hands up in supplication.

"Remember what, Data?"

"I, I, I, my early memories, with my parents..."

"And you didn't tell me?" Roared Maddox. Data stumbled back until he came up against the wall of the lab, his hands held out before him, warding.

"No, no, I did not think, I..."

"You didn't think it was important for me to know? It's what I've been missing! Your early development, the learning process! And you didn't tell me?" The pain stick lashed out and Data shrieked as he fell to the floor, his body twitching with the current. Lore jerked at the chain.

"Leave him alone!" He shouted, but Maddox seemed not to hear, so focused was his anger.

"After everything we've been through, everything I've done for you, you keep secrets from me? How DARE you?" The man shouted. The stick lashed out and Data howled.

"Punish me!" Screeched Lore. "Leave him, punish me!"

Maddox set about the cowering android, beating him with the electrified rod as Lore screamed and swore at him in a hundred different languages, thrashing at the end of the chain, unable to do more than swing his body back and forth, his crippled legs dangling.

It seemed an age before the man stepped back. His shirt was dark with sweat, his chest heaving. Data was curled into a ball, his arms over his head and knees tucked to his chest, weeping.

"I'm done for the day. Tomorrow, you tell me everything. _Everything_, Data."

"I'll fucking kill you, Maddox, I swear it." Snarled Lore, as Maddox put the stick on the console and made his way to the door.

"I'll deal with you tomorrow, Lore." The man said, and then he was gone.

* * *

Maddox stood outside the door for a moment, steadying his breathing. Then he made his way to the onboard gym, where he showered and changed, before heading to his quarters.

The door slid open, and he was greeted by the smell of coffee.

"Bruce! You're late. Is everything going well?" She stood from the couch and he went to her and embraced her gently, minding the bump.

"Yes, everything's fine. The new android will be ready soon, but we had a bit of a setback."

"Oh, darling." She smoothed his dark hair. "Will she be alright?"

"Oh yes, she's fine, just a programming glitch." He smiled and kissed her softly. She smiled, gazing into his eyes.

"Are you hungry?" She asked.

"Starving." He replied with a grin, pulling her close to kiss her neck.

"Bruce, you are incorrigible!" She laughed. He leaned back to brush a strand of her dark hair from her pale face.

"Oh, Sarah. You are so precious to me." He murmured. "I care about you so much, you know that."

"Of course I do." She said fondly. "Still, I'll be glad when this research trip is over and we can get back to normal. I'd rather be on a Starbase when the time comes."

He stepped back to put his hands to her swollen stomach. "I know. Not long now. I'm making wonderful progress."

* * *

Data's wracking sobs had finally abated, his breathing returning to something approaching normal, although his chest still heaved occasionally. Eventually he gathered himself enough to stand, and stumbled to the control panel. He lowered Lore to the floor, and staggered over to him to remove the manacle and fall onto his prone form. Lore pulled him close, drawing his brother to his chest as his tears started afresh.

"Enough. No more." Said Lore. "Tomorrow."


	36. Chapter 36

Perspicibilis. Adjective. Clearly visible.

* * *

"I've got it! This time, I've got it for sure!"

"Okay, calm down. Got what?"

"A signal! It's a real, honest to God signal, the clearest I've picked up so far. We've got to get after them, they're moving away."

"Slow down! What kind of signal?"

"Positronic, Will! It's a positronic signal! It's him, come on, we've got to get moving, they're heading towards the Neutral Zone, if we..."

"Geordi! It's three forty in the morning!"

"I don't care what time it is, we have to go now!"

"Out of the question, Lieutenant!"

"Oh Will, don't, c'mon..."

"Geordi, I can't just order a course change in the middle of the night! This isn't the first time you've found something, just for it to end up a wild goose chase. If it's still there, we'll pick up the signal in the morning, and, with the captain's permission, change course. Now go get some sleep."

"Will, please..."

"Don't make me pull rank, Lieutenant."

"... Yes, sir."


	37. Chapter 37

Chapter Three; Frustror

_Frustror. Verb. 1. Baffle, evade 2. Escape 3. Disappoint, deceive with false hope 4. Fail_

* * *

Maddox made his way from his quarters to the lab. He rubbed his chest absently. It felt hard to breathe, as if the air was too thin. He wondered uneasily if he was getting ill. He would have to stay away from Sarah, if he got sick.

When he entered the lab he saw the two androids huddled together against the wall, as far from the door as possible. He scowled darkly. So, Data had removed Lore from the restraints. Well, he should know by now that he'll be punished for it. Maddox moved to the control panel and reached for the pain stick.

It wasn't there. Neither was the inhibitor.

He looked up at the androids. Data had risen to his feet, the pain stick in his hand. Lore was holding the inhibiting device in his fist, and he made sure Maddox was watching as he ground it to powder with his strong fingers.

"Data..." Maddox warned. The android shook his head.

"No, Bruce. You have no power over me. You will take us to the escape pods. We are leaving."

Maddox's eyes narrowed. "What lies has he told you? Lore doesn't care about you, not like I do!"

"Bruce, please. No more. We are going."

"I won't let you go, Data. Not after everything I've worked for."

"You see?" Hissed Lore. "Just like Father, all he cares about is his work! He doesn't care about us!"

"I have shut down life support, and locked down the control panels. If you wish to survive, you will take us to the escape pods." Data's voice was even, but Maddox could see his hand shaking as he gripped the pain stick. Maddox felt his heart thump painfully in his chest. No wonder he was finding it hard to breathe.

"No! No, Data, what about everyone else on this ship? You would be responsible for their deaths, it would be murder!"

"Take us to the escape pods and I will unlock the controls, then you may reinstate life support. Now, Bruce." Data gestured with the stick towards the door and Maddox took the chance and bolted.

He tore down the corridor towards his quarters, his chest heaving in the thin atmosphere, but before he was even half way a strong hand gripped the collar of his jacket and brought him to a jerking halt, choking as the fabric tightened against his throat. A mask was shoved over his face, the grip on his jacket loosened, and he sucked in a lung-full of fresh air.

Data had Lore in his other arm, gripping him around his chest. Lore's one arm was over his brother's shoulders, supporting his crippled body. Maddox looked into Data's eyes, and they were cold and distant.

"Please, Data!" He gasped. "My wife! She's pregnant!"

"He's lying!" Snarled Lore. "He'd say anything to save his miserable skin!"

"No, I swear it! Please, they'll die..." Data shook his head and dragged the cyberneticist down the corridor.

"If you take us to the escape pods, you can turn the life support systems back on." The android said coldly. Maddox gasped in the air flowing into the mask, and tried to drag together his addled thoughts.

"Data... Think of everything we've accomplished together..."

"Enough! Be quiet." Snapped the android, shaking him roughly. They had come to a junction where three corridors came together. "Which way?" Data questioned him. Maddox looked left then right, but before he could lead them on, a group of people piled around the corner of the left hand corridor. They were fully suited in Starfleet standard issue survival gear, and each was brandishing a phaser rifle.

"Please, help me, they've gone mad!" Maddox shouted through the mask. Data gripped the man's shoulder and rendered him unconscious, grabbing his limp body around the chest and holding him up in front of him as a human shield.

This was not part of the plan. He knew how long a human or Romulan could survive without the life support systems in operation, had gambled their lives for this chance, with only a few spare moments. He had no desire to see them die. And now _they_ were here, the _Enterprise_'s gallant security team, and it would ruin everything. They would take Lore from him, shut him down, dismantle him, without bothering to ask questions.

He could see only one way out.

* * *

Lieutenant Daniels stepped forwards, towards the bizarre trio. A man, Maddox presumably, now unconscious. An android, eyes blazing with rage, supporting the man. And another android, one arm gone, its legs dragging along the floor, its torso tucked under the arm of the able bodied android.

"Put them down, raise your hands!" He shouted through his breathing apparatus, gesturing with the phaser rifle. The android bared its teeth in a parody of a smile, and they were jagged broken shards, a vandalised graveyard of a mouth.

"I think not." It sneered, and pulled the human's limp body closer, hugging him to its chest.

"Put them down and identify yourself!" Daniels called.

"I am Lore." The android snarled. The android it was holding looked up at it sharply.

"What are you doing?" it snapped.

"Shut up!" The other growled, its eyes fixed on Daniels. The security chief felt a bead of sweat track down his back. Lore! He had never met the android before, thank God, but he had heard stories...

"Put them down and surrender!"

Lore laughed. "As if I would leave myself exposed! No, you are going to take us all together, or none at all. You want your precious Data," it spat the name, as if it tasted bitter, "you take me as well."

"Data, stop this, I will not allow..." The other android said.

"You will be silent, Data, or I will shut you down!" Lore shouted.

"Which one of you is Lieutenant Commander Data?" Barked Daniels.

"He is!" The androids chorused.

Daniels dredged up a fragment of information about the android's abilities, something he had heard once, the only way to tell them apart.

"You!" He pointed the rifle at the broken-mouthed android. "Use a verbal contraction!"

It sneered at him. "As if I would stoop to performing party tricks for you worthless bags of flesh!"

"I'm Lore!" Shouted the one-armed android. "He isn't! Can't, shan't, won't!"

"Can't, shan't, won't!" Barked the other android. "Such a stupid game! How many people do you want to die while you force me to jump through hoops?"

"Data, why are you doing this?" Cried the crippled android, squirming in the other's arm.

"Enough! We have to take them both, there's no time to lose." Daniels gestured to his team who, with rifles aimed, parted to escort the strange group to the shuttle latched to the side of the ship. As they approached the air lock, Daniels motioned to a screen.

"Turn the life support back on." He snapped, and Lore curled his lip at him. The android loosened its grip, trusting the other android to support itself with its one arm while Lore's fingers flew over the screen.

"There." Lore stepped away and was ushered into the shuttle, holding the two bodies close. The android's head swung from side to side, making sure that it wasn't being surrounded, that no-one was creeping up behind. It flattened itself against the wall of the shuttle, eyes darting and full of anger and hate. The journey back to the _Enterprise_ was going to be an uncomfortable one.

* * *

Daniels had commed ahead and updated the crew of the _Enterprise_ on the situation, and they were met with the barrels of phaser rifles as they exited the shuttle craft in the hanger bay. Data kept up the act, allowing himself and his two 'hostages' to be herded to a cell in the brig. He waited until the last possible moment before throwing Maddox out just before the force field activated. The man sprawled where he had landed, groaning softly as he began to come round. Two security personnel were on him like a flash, dragging him into an adjacent cell and calling for a med team to asses him. Data had overheard them discussing the sending of a second shuttle to round up the rest of the crew. He hoped that they had all survived. His calculations were rarely wrong, but the interruption of their escape had cost valuable time.

He allowed himself to relax, slumping to the floor of the cell and cradling Lore close, listening to the now familiar crackle and fizz of the force field. There were two security guards watching them, phaser rifles down but ready if they tried anything. The door to the brig opened and the medical team bustled in to help Maddox, talking softly about his condition. Lore ground his teeth. Never mind that he and his brother were lying here, one crippled and the other mad, both hurt and traumatized. Deal with the human who, at most, would be suffering from minor oxygen deprivation and slight bruising. The door opened again and Lore felt a shudder run through Data's body.

"Data!"

Data couldn't help the shock from showing on his face. Geordi had lost weight, hollows showed under his cheek bones, his dark skin ashen. He was unshaven, there were deep shadows under his eyes... His eyes! The most startling change of all. No longer milk-white with blindness, they glittered with the silver and electric blue of cybernetic implants.

The man came to a skidding halt in front of the cell, his eyes flicking back and forth between the two androids. "Data?" His brow creased in consternation.

The androids were in a sorry state. One of them was barely clothed, missing an arm, with twisted legs and patches of bioplast stripped from its body. The other seemed able bodied, but its shirt and trousers were riven and torn, its teeth were a jagged mess. It looked up at him, and his new eyes told him the truth. For the first time in his life, he saw Data as he truly appeared, saw the love shining in his golden eyes.

"We'll get you out, don't worry, he can't hurt you any more." Murmured Geordi, his eyes darting to Lore. Lore barked a mirthless laugh.

"I couldn't hurt him even if I wanted to, La Forge."

"Geordi..." Data whispered. To Lore it seemed that his brother's whole body was vibrating with tension, conflicted.

"Come on, get up, let's go." Geordi beckoned the guards over and they deactivated the force field, rifles at the ready. Data only shook his head, clutching Lore tightly to his chest.

"I cannot, Geordi. I know what will happen, and I will not allow it." He murmured.

"Wh... what are you talking about? Nothing's going to happen to you."

"Not to me, to Lore. He will be deactivated and dismantled."

"He's dangerous, Data! I don't know what he's told you, but you need to get away from him!" Geordi ran a hand through his unruly hair in his agitation. "God, Data, I... I've missed you so much! Please!"

Data shuddered, gasped a sob as he shook his head. "Do not make me choose."

Geordi's silver eyes flashed. "Make you... You're really choosing him over me? He's a murderer, he tried to kill you! You have to get away from him!"

"No, no, no, Geordi, I do not want to choose! I promised..."

The door to the brig slid open again and Captain Picard stalked into the room, closely followed by Riker and Daniels.

"Do we know which one is Data?" The captain barked, and Geordi nodded.

"Yeah, this is him. But he won't leave Lore." Geordi looked devastated, shattered, and Data's mind filled with anguish.

"Data, come away from him." Picard looked at the android. Data sobbed again, shook his head rapidly as twin golden yellow tears tracked down his cheeks.

Picard gritted his teeth. This, indeed, was an unexpected complication. That Data was traumatized there was no doubt, but they couldn't help him unless he left Lore. He felt the weight of his command settle on him once again, as he steeled himself. Sometimes, one had to be cruel, to be kind.

"Data, you are a Starfleet officer, and I am ordering you to leave the cell."

Lore felt Data's hand spasm as its grip loosened. "No, Data!" He growled. "You know what they'll do to me!"

Data's hand went to his head to clench a fistful of his own hair in agitation. His eyes were wide, his mouth hanging open.

"That's an order, Commander!" Picard barked, and Data stood like a puppet being drawn up by its strings. Bereft of his brother's support Lore slumped over sideways, jerking his arm out to latch his hand around Data's ankle.

"Don't, Data! You promised!" He snarled, his grip like a vise.

_Do. As. You're. Told! He could follow orders Just be good Comply All this would be over, the fear and pain would stop Do as you're told, Data! Too much going on in his head and he wanted it to stop stop stop stop stop stop stop stop stop please please please stop stop_

He jerked his leg free from Lore's grip and stepped out of the cell. Immediately the security guards were on the crippled android, flinging themselves onto him bodily and pinning him down. Lore shrieked in rage, kicking, elbowing and clawing, snapping at them when they came close enough to his face.

"He's too, strong, La Forge!" Shouted Daniels, hanging on to Lore's arm, his face grim. Geordi sighed and lifted something in his hand, and Data felt a wave of weakness wash through him. The inhibitor! Geordi had the device from the _Jovis_, and he was using it on them! Data's chest hitched as he drew a shuddering breath and dropped to his knees, his body suddenly too heavy for his hydraulics and servos to support. He heard Lore thrashing and cursing, and tuned his head to look at his brother, barely visible under the guards.

"You promised me, Data! Damn you, you promised!" Lore screamed, and Daniels jabbed a hand into the android's back. Lore's eyes went blank, and his body relaxed as he deactivated.

"No!" Data breathed. He turned, crawled on his hands and knees _and hands and knees and handsandkneesandhandsandkneeskneesknees_ reaching out for his brother. From behind someone grabbed his arm, lifting him up, gripping his wrists above his head, chained and bound and dangling as Bruce prepared to punish him again, and the humans began disassembling his brother, and all Data could do was say 'No, no, no, no'.

"It's for the best, trust me." Said Geordi's voice, but how could he trust him, when he was suspended and crippled, weak and terrified? The security guards were talking to Maddox, and dimly Data heard Bruce wailing, weeping, "My wife! The baby! Please, God, no!" And that made no sense, because he had been so careful, and no-one should have died, it must be a mistake.

"Data, how long was the life support system offline?" That was the captain. Data's eyes were fixed in his head, staring as they dismembered his brother, placing his parts neatly on the bed. Data swallowed.

"Eight minutes, twelve..."

"Data, it was closer to an hour!" Geordi blurted.

Data shook his head, his eyes never leaving Lore. "No, that is not possible."

"Data... we think that Maddox tampered with your neural nets. We think that your internal chronometer may not be functioning correctly." Picard said softly.

"How long have you been gone?" Said Geordi.

"Three weeks, sixteen hours, forty-two..."

"It's been two and a half months, Data." Geordi hadn't released his grip on the android's wrists and he felt the shudder that ran through him, his body trembling with shock. Data's mouth opened and closed spasmodically, his eyes wide.

"Come on, we need to get you to engineering and get you fixed up..."

"No, no, no, no, no, no..."

"Data, come on." Someone said, and the security team stepped away from his brother's corpse and reactivated the force field, as if they were afraid he may escape. Data gulped in air in a hysterical gasp.

"I promised, I told him you would not do this, I said he could trust me, I could not protect him, I have killed him, I killed a woman and her child, I killed a child, nononononono..." Data's vocal synthesiser rendered the last as one long ululating monotone drone, and Geordi cringed. He switched the inhibitor off and pulled at Data's arms, trying to encourage him to his feet.

Data's head whirled. Someone was pulling his arms up, dragging him by the chains on his wrists to dangle helpless and horrified as Fajo prepared to assault him again, and Lore was screaming for them to punish him instead, but Lore was in pieces, and Data knew that it had been his hands that took him apart. His memories tangled with his emotions, the room was too hot, he couldn't breathe, there were too many people and they were all talking at once and he wanted it to stopstopstop because there was too much going on in his head in his headinhishead.

"Please, Data, please! Get up, we have to fix you, you're not well..." Geordi croaked, and suddenly Data stood, wrenching his arms from Geordi's grip. Without a word the android bolted, his incredible speed and agility taking him half way down the corridor before the humans had realized what had happened.

The phasers spat stunning bolts of energy at him and he dodged and wove, throwing himself into a turbolift and flattening himself against the wall. He was out and moving before the doors had even fully opened, flinging himself through the door of his quarters, not bothering with the lights. His fingers flew over the control panel, sealing the door. His chest was heaving, great sobbing breaths leaving his body as his mind flooded with emotions and memories. He stumbled across the room to fall back into a corner against the wall, as far from the door as possible. He tucked his knees to his chest and hugged himself, his face blank and eyes staring. Someone was hammering on the door, screaming his name, and other voices answered, shouting. It was a hideous cacophony, an assault on his ears, and Data disabled his auditory sensors. He felt the footsteps through the floor as they left his door, and he was alone. He could still smell the man's skin, the scent clinging to his wrists, so he disabled his olfactory receptors. The darkness wasn't enough, there was still too much information flowing into his mind, so he shut down his visual feed. He replayed the audio from the cell on Bruce's ship, the comforting static of the force field. He called up the tactile memory of his brother's warm body against his back and his fingers moved, tapping against his own arm as he stared straight ahead into the darkness.

.. .- - ... - .-. .-. -.- .. .- - ... - .-. .-. -.- .. .-.. - ...- . -.- - ..- .. .-.. - ...- . .-.. - ...- . -.- - ..- ... - ... - .-. .-. -.- ... - ... - .-. .-. -.- ... - ... - .-. .-. -.-


	38. Chapter 38

Chapter Four; Sanguis

_Sanguis. Noun. 1. Blood 2. Family_

* * *

His mind slipped away, drifting on the eddying riptides of memory and emotion. He could hear their voices, and it plunged him into the depths of despair. His fault, all of it. Guilt gnawed at him, fear screamed into his mind, anger and grief tearing.

_You took everything from me! After everything I've done for you? Everything I've worked for! You're really choosing him over me? How do you expect me to respect you now? Now, Data, I won't ask again. You're siding with the humans against me again? Do. As. You're. Told! Why do you persist in being so evasive? And then all my work will be destroyed, everything I've worked for... You promised me, Data! You promised!_

"Sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry..." He mumbled, hugging himself, listening to the force field. Dream became memory, memory became dream, and he floated, suspended, cradled in the tactile recall of his brother's arms.

Sometimes he felt footsteps outside his quarters, sometimes he felt the banging against the door. He had no idea how long it took for them to break the code but they did, and then the footsteps were in his room, but he was safe behind the force field and they couldn't touch him there. He would not see them, hear them, smell their human smells. He rejected their presence. Time slipped and whirled, past and present collided in his seething mind, and his brother was dead and alive, and his father was dead and alive, and Geordi loved him and hated him, and Bruce whispered and screamed.

He had no idea how long it was until the door opened again, but this time no human footsteps followed. Instead there was a soft thump. Strange. The impact of snow falling from a pine branch in the quiet forest as he seethed and raged with love. The door shut again.

Something warm settled against his leg. He uncurled one arm and reached down tentatively. His trembling fingers encountered soft fur, and a thrumming rhythmic vibration underneath warm skin.

He drew his hand away again.

A thousand years passed in a few seconds, and the warm pressure came and went, sometimes accompanied by sharp pinprick points of pressure against his leg or arm.

He knew his way around his quarters, had no need of his visual sensors to find his way to the replicator in order to make a bowl of feline supplement number twenty five and a bowl of water, which he placed on the floor before returning to his corner.

He tried to remember what he had been thinking about, and his thoughts slithered away from him, sliding sideways, jumbled and tangled in despair. The warmth returned, a persistent nudging against his elbow, so he raised his arm and allowed the cat to climb into his lap. He stroked it absently and it purred, a rumbling comforting tremor running through his body. It stood and turned in the crook of his body, attempting to soften him into a bed, and then gave up and placed its front paws on his chest to head butt his jaw.

"Spot, no." He murmured. She hauled herself up his body to stick her nose into his ear and purr loudly and damply. He smiled.

"You wish to play? Very well."

* * *

He sat in front of the terminal. They had locked it, trying to prevent him from seeing anything they did not want him to, but their security measures were no challenge for him, and he bullied his way into the files, checking rosters and crew rotations, security details, course and heading.

The time was always wrong, whenever he remembered to check. He gave up, disabled his internal chronometer and replicated a watch.

He put his uniform on, checked himself in the mirror, styled his hair into its usual slicked-back order. His teeth were still a shattered mess, but that couldn't be helped.

He crouched down and levered a panel from the wall. Spot stuck her head under his arm, curious. He looked at her, concerned. He did not want her finding her way into the walls. He picked her up and shut her in the bathroom, with a bowl of food and some fresh water.

He slipped into the wall, burrowing his way through the negative spaces between the rooms of the ship. He slipped past conduits and around shafts, into and then out of Jefferies tubes and crawl-spaces. His mental map of the ship was perfect, and it wasn't long before he was peering out through a vent into the brig.

There was one guard on duty. Data checked his watch and waited. Another guard entered. The two exchanged words, laughing, and the first one left. The second guard took up his station.

They had been told to watch for him. It was a risk to try this now, the guard would be alert, but it would give him the longest space of time before fear of discovery.

He watched the guard intently, waiting for him to relax. He could smell the last meal the man had eaten on him, hear his heartbeat, regular and steady, watched him shift his weight from one foot to the other. He checked his watch again. He saw the guard's eyes unfocus slightly, watched his body relax as his mind wandered. Data backed up into the vent and then flung himself forwards, shoulder first, bursting through the grating and rolling to his feet to launch himself at the startled human. The man didn't stand a chance. Too slow, too slow. Data grabbed him and took him down, latching an arm round his throat and stopping the blood-flow to his brain. The guard clawed and gasped, and Data watched the seconds moving by on his watch as the man went limp. He let the unconscious body down, checked the man's pulse and breathing, and then used the man's jacket to tie him up, tearing the fabric and binding it around his wrists and legs, shoving a wad into his mouth. Only when the guard was secure did he look up.

Maddox was watching, sat on his bunk. He hadn't made a sound. The man's long face was haggard and pale, his dark eyes red rimmed, sore looking. Data ignored him and focused his attention on the other cell.

His brother's body was just as it had been left, torso lying along the bed, twisted legs along side, arm detached, head upright and staring from the foot of the bed. His face was a blank mask, his rage and sorrow erased in the shutdown.

Data deactivated the force field and set to work. He checked his watch regularly, as his mind seemed to slip here and there, time a living thing, twisting as he tried to grasp it. He worked as swiftly as he dared, now was no time for mistakes. It seemed an age before he was pressing his fingers into Lore's back, and watching his brother's eyes focus on his face.

For a long time Lore simply stared at him, and Data returned his gaze. Then Lore's hand came up to touch his brother's face. Data closed his eyes and breathed a sigh.

"You must leave." He murmured. He looked down again into Lore's golden eyes.

"Not yet." Lore whispered, running his fingers over Data's cheek, his eyebrow, drifting his thumb over his lips. His hand went to the back of Data's neck and he went willingly, allowing Lore to pull him down and returning his kiss.

"You must leave." He said again, reluctantly drawing back. Lore's fingers slid up his neck and into his hair.

"I don't know when we may see each other again." Lore said softly. "Be with me, now, please."

"There is no time..."

"Then quickly!" Lore's fingers tightened in his hair as he drew him down, his eyes suddenly hungry and fierce. Lore's mouth pressed against his, demanding, and he had no choice but to acquiesce, love and passion flooding his mind in a searing wave that swept all rational thought away. There was nothing else save the desire to be one again with the other half of himself, to forget that they had ever been apart, forget that they had ever been enemies. He stripped away his jacket and shirt, their mouths locked, Lore's one hand exploring the familiar territory of his neck, shoulder, back. Data groaned into his brother's mouth as he lowered himself onto the bunk, pressing himself to Lore's warm body. Lore's hand was inside his trousers, gripping his hip, now his buttock, urgent and insistent, his body arching up to press himself desperately against his twin. Data pulled himself up to take off the rest of his clothing, and Lore took the opportunity to sit up and kiss his brother's hot chest, feeling the thrum of the machinery within, tasting his skin. Data reached down and removed Lore's shorts and lifted him up off the bunk, his arms looped under Lore's legs, hands on his back. He pressed him to the wall of the cell and buried himself in him, gasping and shuddering. Lore hooked his arm around his brother's neck, flexing his spine, pushing himself against the wall and onto his brother, hissing through his teeth.

"Quiet." Data gasped, trembling, his eyes flicking as he rerouted his fluidic system. Lore pressed his lips together and rocked his hips, and Data lifted him slightly, tilting his pelvis to find the perfect angle of penetration as he moved. He knew he had found it when Lore's eyes rolled and he gritted his teeth, his fingers clawing at Data's back. Data bit back a moan as his brother's body tightened around him, and he fastened his mouth on Lore's neck to muffle his cries as he began to thrust into him in earnest.

"Fuck me!" Lore breathed into his ear. "Do it! Harder!" Data was only too eager to comply, the surging upswell of passion compelling him, his body shuddering as he struggled to control his heaving breaths.

"No, damn you!" Lore's voice was a harsh gasp. "Fuck me! FUCK me!" His eyes opened wide and his mouth gaped as Data pounded him into the wall, no-one but another android could ever have withstood such treatment. Data's head whirled, his internal systems howling with effort as his lust came to its peak. He looked into Lore's eyes, saw his reflection staring back at him from his reflection staring back at him from his reflection staring back at him.

"Don't stop, don't you dare... fucking..." Lore gave a strangled sob, his eyes fixed on his brother's, and Data bent forwards to press their foreheads together, falling into his twin's eyes, spiralling away into ecstasy. He came with a shuddering gasp, Lore's body taut and trembling, tightening around his sex, spasming with his own orgasm. Lore's breath was hot on his face, his eyes bright and full of lust and love, and Data's legs gave out under them and he sat suddenly. Lore rolled his eyes and groaned through his clenched teeth as the jarring drop forced his brother's hardness into him.

"More, again." He moaned, gasping for breath, rocking himself onto Data's hardness.

"No, no, stop, you... You must go." Data's arms were tight around him, still moving under and inside him, giving the lie to his words. Lore grabbed his brother's jaw and kissed him fiercely, grinding himself onto his twin. Data untangled his arms from his brother's body, grabbed his pelvis, pulling him onto his hardness, bucking his hips up into him as he lay back on the floor, spine arching with pleasure. He was going to come again, felt the pressure mounting, and he bit back a gasp as he felt Lore's body grip him once more. Lore was leaning back, his cock in his hand, his eyes wild and feral, his gaze locked with Data's. His body lurched forwards as he came, moaning as he climaxed. Data gasped out loud as he felt Lore's orgasm rip through his body, and he clutched desperately at his brother's hips, driving himself up and into him, his mind awash with euphoria as he peaked again, his body straining, gasping with effort as he spent himself.

They stayed like that for a moment, chests heaving, gazing at each other. Data's hands trembled on Lore's hips, and Lore put his hand to the floor to lean forwards and kiss him, soft and tender.

"Now you must go." Said Data, and Lore laughed softly.

"You know what I have to do?"

Data nodded. "It is all right. Take what you need. Run."

"I'm going to kill him, you know that?"

"I would rather you did not. But I understand."

Lore kissed him again, looked deep into his eyes. "Come with me."

"I cannot."

"Because of that human." Lore's eyes narrowed.

"... Yes."

"He will never love you like I do. He will never understand you like I do." Lore's gaze had gone hard, and Data shook his head.

"I know." Data reached up, drew Lore into a crushing embrace. "But who knows how long androids may live? I will be with you again."

Lore grunted in agreement and finally pushed himself up, reaching out to gather Data's uniform scattered around the cell. He leaned over his brother, slid his hand behind his back.

"Before I go..." Lore quirked an eyebrow. "How is it that you were able to use verbal contractions, when you were pretending to be me?"

Data smiled wanly. "I replayed the audio of your voice."

Lore chuckled. "You always did have perfect recall. My Munnin." His face fell as he looked down on his brother.

"Remember that I love you." He murmured, and Data smiled sadly.

"I do not think that I ever forgot."

* * *

Geordi was leaning over him, his optical implants glittering. His face was hard and drawn, his jaw clenched. Data looked up at him as he briefly analysed his situation. He registered his missing left arm, his legs replaced with Lore's mangled and twisted limbs.

"Did he escape?" He breathed. Geordi bared his teeth in a snarl and looked up and away.

"You! Get that grav over here and give me a hand." He snapped. He and two security guards lifted Data onto the anti grav sled, cuffing the android's one arm to the rail. Geordi grabbed the controls, shoving the sled out of the cell.

"You look, you fucking look!" He growled, and Data turned his head to the cell adjacent to Lore's.

Lore had been nothing if not thorough. Maddox's face still bore an expression of shock, although his head was now at the opposite end of the bunk to his neck. His limbs had been twisted and ripped from his body and stacked in a heap on the floor. It seemed that Lore had taken great pains to ensure that every inch of the interior of the cell was painted with the man's blood, the walls dripping crimson, the floor a slick pool.

Data knew he should be feeling something, anything. But there was nothing. No horror, no sadness, no hate, no glee at their shared revenge on their tormentor. Just a nagging sense of worry. He turned his head back to Geordi.

"Did he escape?" He asked again.

Geordi's jaw worked for a moment, his bright eyes hard as ice. He turned his head to the guards.

"Out!" He barked. The guards looked at each other, concerned.

"I said out! That's an order!" Geordi snapped, and the guards reluctantly left the room. Geordi looked down on Data, breathing hard through his nose.

"What the hell, Data?" He growled. "Is that really all you care about right now? Finding out if Lore got away with murder, again?"

"Yes." Data said simply.

Geordi brought his fist thumping down on the grav sled. "For fuck's sake, Data!" He shouted. "After everything... You know, I've been through hell these last weeks, HELL! And... and now, you..." He dragged his hands over his face, raking his nails across his scalp. "Maddox is dead, Lore killed him, do you understand? And, and we can't just put him back together again! He's... Oh, God..." Geordi leaned on the grav sled, his head bowed, breathing harsh. Data reached out and brushed his fingers across the back of the man's hand, and Geordi leapt back as if he had been burned.

"Don't you dare! Don't you DARE touch me, Data!" He shouted. "Don't you understand what you've done? God, they've asked me to try and repair you, but I... I can't even look at you right now! I... Oh, fuck... I think I'm gonna pass out." Geordi's face was ashen, his eyes fixed on the dismembered corpse.

"Geordi..."

"No, no, you... just shut up!" Geordi was shaking, fists clenched and jaw working in his agitation. He dropped his eyes to the floor. "I'm taking you to your quarters. You'll be held there until... Until we can decide what to do with you."

"I understand." Data said. Geordi looked at him now, and his eyes were red-rimmed, his lip curled.

"Do you? Really? Do you understand what I've been going through, all the hours of work? I... I haven't been sleeping, barely eating, I was so worried about you! And now..." He gestured weakly at the blood-drenched cell. "I... I can't do this, Data. I'll take you to your quarters, and that's it. They can find someone else to try and fix you, I'm done. I'm done."

"Geordi..." Data looked up at him earnestly. "Please tell me. Did he escape?"

Geordi's mouth fell open, and all he could do was stare at the android for a moment, before his face twisted and he barked a mirthless laugh.

"Yeah, yeah, he escaped. Injured a bunch of people doing it, killed Maddox, but I guess that doesn't matter to you, does it?" He leaned down, pushing his face aggressively towards the prone android. "Does any of it matter to you, Data? Is he the only thing you care about?"

"He was all I had, for so long." Data replied mildly. Geordi shut his eyes tightly, sending two tears spilling over his cheeks.

"Did you think about me at all? Did you stop and think, just for a moment, about what I might be going through? Even for a second?" He threw his hand up, stalling Data's reply. "No, you know what, don't say anything, because I don't think I want to know the answer." He pushed himself up and took the controls of the grav sled, guiding it through the door. The guards were waiting outside, and wordlessly they fell in behind.


	39. Chapter 39

Curtana; The Blade of Mercy

Chapter One; Curo

_Curo. Verb. 1. Attend to 2. Heal/cure 3. Take care of 4. Worry/care about_

* * *

Locked once more in his quarters, Data stared up at the ceiling. They hadn't bothered to restrain him, his crippled legs rendering him almost immobile. They had even taken Spot away, presumably because he couldn't be trusted to care for her.

Time slipped and swirled around him and, with nothing else to do, he closed his eyes and activated his dream program.

* * *

He was walking down the corridors of the _Enterprise_, surrounded by the comforting blanket of sound from the force field in his cell. Somewhere, someone was screaming, but he couldn't tell who. The walls ran red with blood, and his feet splashed as he walked towards his brother, who was wearing his uniform. They met and merged and passed through each other like ghosts, not quite touching. A raven flew over his shoulder, trailing golden droplets from its wingtips. It was followed by another, dripping blood from its talons. They swirled around his head, croaking and flapping, before wheeling away. He spat out eleven teeth and listened to them clatter onto the deck plate, bouncing and kicking up crimson splashes.

There was a woman kneeling on the sodden floor, clutching at her throat, her eyes wide with terror. It was the new android, and it had never lived, and it keeled over sideways and dissolved into the blood, its dark hair drifting away like foam. Lal looked up at him sadly as he walked by, an umbilical cable linking her to Maddox, dangling from his own chains. Geordi was on his hands and knees and there was blood running down his face as he looked up at Data, his eyes open holes, drooling gore.

"Your fault!" He hissed as Data walked past. His brother was there, waiting, walking towards him, naked, and he was naked too and unashamed, and their outstretched hands met, palm to palm, and then the mirror shattered and he was standing in a maelstrom of glittering shards, black feathers and crimson droplets.

* * *

He opened his eyes as the door hissed open and Geordi entered his quarters. The man's head was bowed, he seemed unwilling to meet the android's gaze.

"So, I'm here to take a look at you." He mumbled. Data shook his head to try and clear it. He felt groggy.

"You said that you would find someone else..."

"Well, there isn't anyone, okay? Just me. So." Geordi flicked idly at a cat toy left on the table. "Here I am. Let's just... get this over with."

"Geordi, I want to..."

"No." The man held up his hand. "No. I don't wanna hear it, I don't want to talk to you. I'm just here to try and fix you, that's it."

Data contemplated this for a moment. "I see."

Geordi moved to the side of the bed and leant over to push his hand under the android's back, and Data felt all his love and passion for him swelling in his chest, burning through his circuitry, flooding him with adoration. He reached up his hand to cup Geordi's cheek, and the man jerked his head back, glaring down at him.

"Don't, just... Just don't." Geordi's jaw was working, his brow furrowed. He pressed his fingers into Data's switch and the android relaxed into unconsciousness, his arm falling limp to the bed.

Geordi stood there for a long while, looking down at the immobile android, before shaking his head with a sigh and grabbing his case of tools.

* * *

When Data came back online, it was with a shock of clarity. Only now did he realize how stunted his thought processes had been, how distorted by emotion. He lay there as Geordi gathered his tools, eyes flicking back and forth as he analyzed his past actions, his behaviours. He looked across the room at the man.

"What did he do to me?" He whispered. Geordi glanced up and then away from him.

"He made a damn mess of you. It was all... so many crossed circuits, stuff spiced and rewired. He'd managed to fit a booster on your emotion chip, bypassed a bunch of your programming. A damn mess."

"I..." Data didn't know what to say. He called up his logs, sifting through his memories with horror and shame. "I am so sorry."

"Yeah, well. We've got enough going on right now, so I can't get started on repairing your legs or replacing your arm and teeth for a while. So, I'll... I'll see you later." Geordi moved towards the exit, and Data threw his hand up, reaching out.

"Wait! Please Geordi, I want to..."

"Look." Geordi turned back to look at him. "I know you weren't thinking right, but... Some of the stuff..." He ran a hand down his face. "I can't talk to you right now."

"But if you give me a chance to..."

"Data! I said I can't, okay? Just, just leave it."

"But..."

"No. Not now." The man turned away again.

"If not now, then when, Geordi? I want to explain..."

"Data..." Geordi shook his head, turned once more to the android. "Honestly, I can't imagine how anything you could tell me could make me feel any different."

"Do you no longer love me, then?" Data whispered.

"I wish I _could_ stop loving you, it'd make all this a damn sight easier." Geordi sighed, began pacing the room. "I've been so... So worried. I imagined any number of ways that you might behave when I finally got you back. I, I thought I was prepared. But, to see you like that, with Lore of all people... What the hell was going on? He... He's insane, Data!"

"I love him, Geordi. I have my memories, and I know..."

"Wait." Geordi stilled his restless movements, fixed Data with his silver eyes. "What? Memories? What's that supposed to mean?"

"The emotion chip contained my memories from Omicron Theta, before I was deactivated. I have integrated them into my main memory banks and..."

"Omicron Theta!" Geordi's mouth had fallen open. "You have your... your childhood memories?"

"Yes, from the time that I first came online fully, with my father and mother, and my brother..."

"And what you learned, what you remember, that's enough to make you forget what he did to you? What he made you do, how many lives he's ruined? Really?"

"No, Geordi, I have not forgotten, nor can I forgive him, however I understand him more completely, now that I have an insight into his motivations..."

"He's a psychopath!" Geordi threw his hands into the air and resumed his restless pacing. "You, you 'understand his motivations'? Do you realize how crazy that makes you sound?"

"Geordi!" Data barked. "How can I be expected to explain the situation to you if you will not allow me to complete a sentence?"

"I don't see how you _can_ explain any of this!" Geordi snapped. "It's crazy, just crazy! Look, I... I already said I didn't want to do this now, I've got enough going on. I'll come back when I've got the time to get you fixed, and that's the last I've got to say about it!"

"Geordi, please!" Began Data, but the man had already stalked from the room.

* * *

Guinan looked up at the doors to the lounge bar a second before they opened and Geordi loped in, head down. He threw himself onto a stool at the bar, and she sidled over.

"What can I get you?"

He shook his head and sighed, not meeting her eyes. "I dunno. I don't care."

She pursed her lips and turned away, returned a moment later and placed two empty glasses on the bar in front of the engineer. He quirked an eyebrow as he looked up at her, and she gestured to each glass in turn as she spoke.

"That one's 'I dunno', and the other is 'I don't care'. I put a dash of 'whatever' in that one, just for good measure." She folded her arms and looked at him with her deep dark eyes. "Now, what I _can_ get you is a big glass of 'tell me all about it'."

Despite himself, Geordi cracked a smile. "What's in it?"

She frowned thoughtfully. "Well, that depends. What I do know is that, although it might leave a bad taste in your mouth, you'll feel better afterwards."

"Got any Saurian Brandy?" Geordi asked hopefully. Guinan shook her head.

"Only the replicated kind. The last thing you need right now is alcohol."

"I beg to differ. I think what I need is to get very, _very_ drunk."

Guinan looked at him for a moment before gliding to the replicator and returning with a large mug, gently steaming. She put it in front of him, and Geordi snorted a laugh.

"Coffee?"

"Yes. Because I think what you need is to get very, _very_ sober." She leant across the bar on her arms as Geordi sipped. "So, talk."

He closed his eyes for a moment as the bitter drink warmed him, opened them again with a sigh.

"I dunno what's going on with him. He's, he's just so... different. The Data I know would never have done those things. I mean, we're talking about him being an accessory to _murder_! That's... I can't get my head round it."

"So, he's changed. Do you know why?"

"He said something about getting his old memories back, but I don't see how they could change him so much."

"That's because _getting_ the memories is the 'how', not the 'why'. You talked to him?"

"I..." He inhaled deeply, wrapped his hands around the warm mug. "I tried, but I can't seem to... I can't talk to him like before."

"Hmm." Guinan was frowning. "I take it that it didn't go well, then?"

"Oh, we just ended up arguing. I guess it's all just too soon, it's so... fresh in my mind."

"Okay. So, you talked to him. Did you try listening?"

"Well..." Geordi scowled. "No, I guess I didn't."

"And why didn't you listen?"

Geordi sighed again, sipped his coffee. "Probably because I don't want to hear what he has to say."

Guinan quirked an eyebrow, wordlessly nudging him on. Geordi scowled and thumped the mug onto the bar.

"Because if he explains, I have to accept it, and maybe it's easier to be angry with him, because right now, I'd rather hate him than try to wrap my head around why he's done what he's done. Because if he explains, it might make me hate him less, and that means I have to care again, and, and..." He inhaled deeply again his breath shuddering. "And I'm not sure I can cope. I don't know if I can keep caring about him so, so much, because I think it might end up killing me."

"Right." Guinan nodded thoughtfully. "One more question; D'you often wear your shoulders as earrings?"

Geordi's brow furrowed deeply. "What? Is that some kind of a riddle?"

"No. Your shoulders are up around your ears. Lower them."

Geordi looked at her for a moment before he registered just how tense he had become. He leant back and straightened his spine, let his shoulders drop, inhaled deeply and breathed it out slowly through his nose.

"I can't stop thinking about him." He murmured, closing his eyes. "Why did it have to get so complicated, so... difficult?"

"No-one ever said it would be easy. Trust me, I know. Caring hurts, sometimes. But you've got to make a decision; Do you think what you have is worth the work, the pain, the fight? Or, is it better to know when to quit?"

Geordi opened his eyes, looked at her with his silver gaze. "What do you think?"

She shook her head. "Doesn't matter what I think. It's what you think. And what you feel."

"Damn, it's just like it was when we first got into this mess, my head versus my heart. I love him, I really do, but... I don't know if it makes sense for us to keep at this."

"Do you know where he stands on this?" She tilted her head to one side.

"He... he says he loves me. And, I guess, if he really wanted to be with his brother, then he would have left with him. I guess that counts for something."

"Damn right it does." She said. "It means he's made his decision, and now he's waiting for you to make yours."

"But how can I say for sure I want to be with him when I don't even know why he's done all this terrible stuff?"

"Well, for that, you're going to have to listen to him." She reached out and gently drew the empty mug from his hands. "Now, can I get you anything else?"

"Nah, I think I'm sober enough." He stretched his back, rolled his shoulders. "Guess I've got some thinking to do."

"Alright. If you need another, you know where to find me."

"Yeah. Thanks, Guinan."

She watched him leave the bar, her dark eyes sad.


	40. Chapter 40

Chapter Two; Delico

_Delico. Verb. 1. Clarify, explain 2. Reveal, disclose_

* * *

It took Geordi two days to run out of excuses for not visiting the crippled android. When he did, it was with a heavy heart. He rang the chime, more out of politeness than need, and opened the door when he heard Data call. He entered the room hesitantly.

"Hey."

Data hadn't moved since Geordi had left him. The man supposed he shouldn't be surprised. After all, his legs- Lore's legs, Geordi mentally corrected himself- were useless, and with only one arm he was essentially immobile. Geordi sighed. Data hadn't greeted him in return, was facing the wall, staring into the darkness. Geordi frowned.

"Why are the lights off?"

"You and I have no need of them. Why should I have them on if they serve no purpose?"

Geordi huffed a small laugh. "I guess. Kinda weird though. Sitting here in the dark."

"Lying. Not sitting. In the dark." Data's voice lowered. "Alone."

Geordi shook his head, tried to curb his irritation. So, Data was feeling abandoned. Well, he had every right to.

"You're not alone now." Geordi pulled a chair to the side of the bed, and Data turned his head to look at him, golden eyes luminous in Geordi's enhanced night vision. The sharpness of the android's gaze made the man shudder and he looked away, suddenly anxious.

"Guess I should start by apologizing." Geordi rubbed the back of his neck nervously. "I... I didn't give you a chance to explain, I just... I was just so angry, so disappointed. Y'know, I'd been dreaming about seeing you again, how great it was going to be, and then..." He took a deep breath and blew it out, turned his head to look at Data. "So, I want you to tell me everything. I want you to explain. And... and we'll just, go from there."

Data was still staring at him, unblinking in the gloom. Then Geordi saw the android's eyes flicker, a sure sign that he was accessing his memory banks. He looked back at the engineer, and Geordi was relieved to see that his gaze had softened.

"The explanation may take some time. Would you care for a beverage? I am afraid you will have to serve yourself." Data looked down and waved his hand at his legs as explanation and Geordi chuckled weakly as he stood.

"Yeah, alright. You want anything?"

"No, thank you."

Geordi fetched himself a coffee and sat back next to the bed as Data began, from the moment he materialized in the holding cell. He paused frequently in his recounting of his memories, and Geordi resolved not to interrupt. Data was obviously finding it difficult to open up about some of his experiences, and as his story unfolded Geordi began to understand his reluctance. Data told Geordi how Maddox had warped his thought processes, how eager he became to please the man, and how terrified he was of the consequences of his disobedience.

"I understand now that my behaviour was due, in part, to the modifications that Maddox made to my neural net. But, having said that, I am not sure that I would have behaved differently had he not altered my emotion chip. Although perhaps it would have taken him longer to... persuade me."

He told Geordi of the discovery of Lore's presence, their developing of a silent communication, and the reclaiming of his memories. He explained to Geordi, as best he could, that integrating the memories had changed the way he thought and felt about his brother, how their previous closeness had altered his perceptions. He tried to skirt around some aspects of their relationship, but Geordi became increasingly suspicious.

"Data, you're hiding something from me. Y'know, you're a lousy liar."

"I am not lying. I... I am merely omitting certain information that I believe is not relevant."

Geordi sighed and rubbed his eyes. "I just want you to be honest with me. It's obvious there's more to this that you're not telling me!" He looked at the android and Data looked away, fixing his eyes on the ceiling.

"You will not understand."

"But I'm trying to! I, I _want_ to understand!"

"You may wish to, but I am unsure how to explain without fear that you will judge my actions against human moral and ethical standards."

Geordi paused. "Wait. What are you saying? That... that what you did is... immoral?"

"That depends on your standards, as I said." Data was still staring fixedly at a point on the ceiling. Geordi felt the anxiety swell in his chest and he clenched his hands into fists to stop them from shaking.

"Just... just tell me, Data. Just say it, right now." Geordi demanded. His breathing suddenly seemed too loud in the still room, his heart thumping in his chest. Data glanced at him, and then away again.

"Our relationship became sexual."

Geordi gasped and bowed his head as the blood thundered in his ears, the wave of revulsion sweeping away rational thought.

"Please... please tell me you're joking. Tell me this is... some sort of sick prank." He croaked.

"You demanded the truth, Geordi. You must accept it."

"No, no, no." Geordi shoved himself up out of the chair and began pacing the room. "Just because you've told me the truth, that doesn't mean I have to accept it! It's, it's not automatic! I can't just... brush it aside! Oh, oh fuck, Data, are you really... he's your brother! Oh God, I think I might throw up..." Geordi stumbled to the couch and slumped down onto the cushions, burying his face in his hands. Data sighed.

"I will endeavour to explain things from our point of view if you wish, to ensure that you are aware of how our perspective of the issue differs from the accepted social norms of..."

"How could you possibly explain?" Geordi cried, lifting his head to look wildly at the android. "How could anything you say change the fact that you... that..." Geordi shuddered as a fresh thought intruded. "When you were on that ship... when you came back here... you wouldn't leave him..." Geordi stood and walked slowly to the bedside to look down on Data. His dark face was ashen, silver and blue eyes gleaming. "Were you..." He took a shuddering breath. "Were you... intimate with him? Here, in the present?"

"... Yes." Data still wouldn't meet his gaze. Geordi felt the universe tilt around him, his foundations crumbling. His hands were tingling, his legs numb, his heart clenching painfully in his chest.

"I've been waiting for you." He whispered. "I had surgery, I-I worried so, so much... and the whole time... you were fucking your brother?"

"It was not like that. My thought processes..."

"Did he force you?" Geordi snapped, his voice shaking. "Did Maddox force you to fuck him? Did you want it?"

"It was consensual, but..."

"Oh God, oh God..." Geordi put his hands to his face. "This is a nightmare. A-any minute I'll wake up... Oh fuck..."

"Geordi, please calm down and let me explain."

Geordi lowered his shaking hands, looked at the android. He took a deep breath and forced himself to relax, trying to present the impression of a calmness that he didn't feel.

"Okay. Okay, you... You explain. BUT..." He held up a hand, stalling Data. "I... I don't promise that an explanation is going to be enough. It... it's a lot, Data, you know? I'll try to... to understand. But..."

"I know, and I do understand your trepidation. It is my hope that providing clarity on our perspective may enable you to judge us by our own standards, and perhaps then to make an informed decision."

"Okay. I... I'm getting another coffee."

* * *

No more interruptions, he told himself, and he sat and sipped and listened as Data told him about Omicron Theta, the bond that developed between the androids. Their shared passion and love, the closeness that they could only find with each other. He told Geordi of the assault on him perpetrated by the colonists, the resultant betrayal by their father, their escape. The activation of the homing devices, the removal of his emotions and memories. Data's voice was flat as he explained how Maddox had used the bond between them to ensure Lore's compliance, how Data had managed to convince the man to allow him to repair his brother, allowing them to escape.

"It was never my intention to harm anyone on that ship. I had no idea how profoundly altered my thought processes were. Had I known, I never would have attempted such a risky strategy. I must live with the guilt, the repercussions of my actions, all my life."

He told Geordi how the activation of the inhibitor had triggered his memories of his assaults, causing his mental breakdown. Geordi shook his head and looked away. He knew all too well how badly Data had been affected, had seen him sitting in the corner of his quarters in the dark, unresponsive.

"I must ask; whose idea was it to put Spot in my quarters?"

Geordi laughed shakily. "Well, Counselor Troi was thinking that I could sit with you, but it... it wasn't practical. It was Reg who said 'what about Spot?', so, you've got him to thank."

Data nodded thoughtfully. "I shall make a note to do so."

"So..." Geordi put his mug down. "Then you snuck down to the brig and let Lore out."

"Yes." Data closed his eyes briefly. "I was... aware of the likely consequences of my actions. However, the alternative was to abandon my brother. I could not allow it. I promised that I would protect him, and I failed. I had to... make things right."

"You knew he was going to kill Maddox."

"Yes. And..." Data looked away. "I... I would have preferred an alternative outcome, but I am not sorry that he is dead."

"I guess I can understand that." Geordi said. He twisted his fingers together in his lap. "So... why didn't you leave with him?"

The silence stretched as Data pondered his answer, and Geordi knew that his pause was only to give the illusion of deep contemplation. Even so, he appreciated the chance to gather his shattered thoughts.

"I love him. I always will, and I cannot change that. But, please do not think that my affection for him somehow lessens my love for you. Love is not finite, it is not diminished by being shared. I simply realized that, what Lore and I had, before, we can no longer return to. We are too different, too much has happened, and I can neither forget nor forgive him for his crimes."

"Then why did you let him go?"

Data looked at Geordi. "I was under the impression that the Federation no longer considered executing prisoners to be ethical."

"Well, yeah, but, deactivation is different."

"How so? Because there is the potential for it to be reversed?" Data shook his head in irritation. "Would you shoot someone, mortally wound them, safe in the knowledge that with appropriate and prompt medical attention their life could be saved?"

"That's... that's different..."

"Because we are androids." Data quirked a small, bitter smile. "He would never have been reactivated. He would have been dissected. That is not justice, that is murder."

"He's too dangerous..."

"He is as alive, as sentient, as I am. It would be hypocritical of me to stand by and allow his rights to be violated, whilst enjoying the privileges allowed me by my status. So," Data looked up at the man. "Here we are."

Geordi sighed, pushed his palms into his knees and stood. "Yeah. Here we are." He rolled his shoulders to try and release the tension, returned his mug to the replicator. "I've gotta go. I... I've got a lot of thinking to do."

"I understand. Geordi?"

"Yeah?"

"Please... never doubt that I love you. I stayed. I am here only for you."

Geordi heaved another heavy sigh. "Sure. I just... I'm not sure it's enough."

He bowed his head and left the android lying in the dark.

* * *

Data pondered the situation for some time. He was grateful that his mind was once again clear and he could think and analyze with his customary thoroughness.

"Computer. Lights."

Geordi had left the chair by the bed and, with some difficulty, Data managed to manoeuvre himself into it. He rocked his body awkwardly, and 'walked' the chair to the replicator, where he tapped the screen. The replicator chirruped an acknowledgement.

"Twelve kilos of titanium in these configurations..." Data began typing a command when the computer interrupted.

"This replicator unit is no longer allowed to produce non-domestic items."

Data frowned. Obviously they had changed the program to prevent him from replicating anything potentially dangerous. He scooted the chair to a nearby screen.

"Computer. Please display a list of all non-food items available from the replicator in these quarters."

The words began to scroll up the screen.

"Ten times speed, please."

The words flew past. Even so, it took an appreciable amount of time. When the list ended, Data frowned again. This was going to be much more difficult than he had imagined. He looked around the room, analyzing. He reached out to the table, grabbed the leg and pinched it between his fingers experimentally, measuring its resistance. He pursed his lips thoughtfully, then turned back to the replicator.

"Please provide the following list of tools..."


	41. Chapter 41

Chapter Three; Peto

_Peto. Verb. 1. Beg, entreat 2. Desire 3. Reach for 4. Aim at 5. Attack_

* * *

It took three days before he was satisfied with his efforts. He checked the terminal in his room for details of his security clearance. The personal terminal had been locked down, allowing him access to only basic information, but he was able to ascertain that there were no special orders posted regarding his movements around the ship. This was reassuring, as he had no wish to break any more rules or regulations. Still, he resolved to have a word with Daniels. Surely a guard should be posted, his movements restricted. Nevertheless, the situation suited him for now, so his concerns could wait. Probably, he reflected, until after he had tendered his apologies to the security chief. He pinned the empty arm of his uniform up to stop it from flapping, and left his quarters.

He hadn't realized just how difficult his mission would be until he was halfway down the corridor and the first pin snapped. He examined the damage and decided that the rest would hold, but he would have to be much more careful.

"I... Is everything alright, sir?" An ensign asked, looking at him with a mix of nervousness and concern.

"Yes, quite all right, thank you." Data replied, straightening up and resuming his halting journey, his one hand on the wall for support.

"Do you need some help, sir?" The ensign called after him.

"No, thank you. I would like to do this on my own. Your offer of assistance is, nevertheless, appreciated."

* * *

It took him over forty minutes to reach main engineering, by which time he was extremely thankful that he had checked that Geordi would be there. He had no wish to wander the ship in this state for any longer than was necessary.

The first person he saw was Hesling, standing with her back to the door, poring over a read out on one of the display panels.

"Excuse me..." He began, and she whirled around with a yelp.

"Data! I-I mean, Commander! Wh... what are... I mean..." Her freckled face had flushed, and her cry of surprise had caused heads to turn. Data could hear muttering. He held out his hand in a calming gesture, and then had to grab at the console to steady himself.

"Please, where is Commander La Forge?" He asked, trying to keep the tremble of nervousness from his voice.

"Um, he's over by the warp core, but..."

"Thank you, that will be all." Data cut her off and lurched with as much poise as he could muster towards the glowing heart of the ship.

Geordi was standing with Fisk, going over something with the tall man as he held out a PADD. Fisk looked up and his mouth fell open as he saw the android approaching. Geordi turned to see what had captured the engineer's attention, and it was his turn to gape in surprise.

"Data?" He breathed. Data drew himself up as best he could with his hand on the nearest console, and fixed Fisk with his gaze.

"Would you give us a moment, please?" He asked, and the lanky man was only too pleased to scuttle away to join the small cluster of murmuring people. Geordi's jaw clenched as he glared at the android stood before him.

"Data, what the hell do you think you're doing here?" Geordi growled. His silver-blue eyes were hard, his posture tense, and Data began to recalculate the projected outcome of his actions. He dropped his gaze.

"I wished to convince you of my sincerity. And..." He shifted awkwardly, and then bent one knee to lower himself to the deck. Geordi's heart constricted in his chest.

"You've got to be kidding..." He croaked. Data pulled his other leg under himself until he was resting on both knees, kneeling in front of the engineer.

"... I wish to apologize." Data said. He raised his head, gazing up at Geordi with simple dignity. "I hope that you will accept."

"A-accept what?" Stammered Geordi. His fingers felt numb, his heart was in his throat.

"My apology." Data seemed confused. Geordi dragged his hands over his face.

"Just... get up, damn it, you're embarrassing the hell out of me." he hissed.

"Not until you accept my apology."

"Okay, yes, fine, I accept your apology!" Geordi whispered harshly, leaning towards the android. "I don't know what the hell you were thinking coming down here and... Just... Get up!"

Data's eyes flicked from side to side. "Ah. Um, I... appear to be stuck." He looked up at Geordi apologetically, and the man gritted his teeth, his eyes sparking dangerously.

"Fisk! Tramin! Get over here and help!" He bellowed. The two engineers scurried over and grabbed the android, hauling him to his feet, Data struggling to straighten his right leg.

"Well, I suppose now you're here we're going to have to try and fix you." Geordi grumbled. "Come on, let's take a look. How did you repair the legs anyway?"

The android made his way unsteadily to a nearby work station, assisted by the two engineers. He shook his head as he sat on the surface, shoving himself up on to the surface with difficulty.

"I was unable to repair the limbs, the damage was too extensive. I decided instead that a temporary set would suffice."

"Wait, what?" Geordi frowned. "What temporary set?"

In answer Data reached down and hauled one of his legs up onto the work station. He dragged the cuff of the trouser leg up, and Geordi gaped. Where before the leg had been smooth white-gold bioplast, now there was just a jumbled framework of chrome and steel, cables and springs, the barest bones of a limb. The engineer leaned in close to gaze at the structure.

"Holy crap, Data..." He breathed. "Did you... make this?"

"Of course. My replicator is locked into domestic mode, and therefore I am unable to procure the specific items and materials that I would require to replace the limbs."

"So this... this is all household stuff?" Geordi whistled low. "This is... this is amazing!" He turned his head to call; "V'Las! Hesling! Come look at this!"

The Vulcan and the red-haired woman came scurrying over to examine the android's makeshift self-repairs, and begin to discuss what to do next.

* * *

"I have removed the damaged limbs at the mid-thigh detachment point. This should make it easier to replicate and attach the lower limbs, without the need for extensive re-wiring." The android was explaining. Geordi had cut away enough of his uniform to expose the android's legs (much to the embarrassment of a furiously blushing Hesling), and Data was now sitting with both limbs stretched on the work surface, gesturing to the strange assortment of objects he had cobbled together.

"Are these..." Geordi reached out tentatively to run his fingers across a cluster of thin cables.

"Guitar strings." The android answered, and Geordi looked up at him sharply. Data shrugged one shoulder.

"They had approximately the correct tensile strength. I feel the need to inform you that they are replicated, and not actually the set from my guitar, although, as a romantic gesture, that may have had more of an emotional impact."

Geordi shook his head, and Hesling clapped her hand over her mouth to stifle a nervous giggle. V'Las settled with raising an eyebrow.

"Y'know, this really is amazing." Murmured Geordi, absorbed once more in his examination. "You got table legs, guitar strings, sofa springs... what the hell are these?" He pointed at the shining curved surfaces protecting the cables running across the knee joint.

"Teaspoons. They had the correct curvature and..."

"I don't believe it... This is nuts!" Geordi shook his head in disbelief. "I can't believe you walked through the entire ship with kneespoon teacaps..." He frowned. "Teacap kneesp... Teaspoon kneecaps!" He glared at a giggling Hesling. "_You_ try saying that five times fast." He turned back to the android, shaking his head again, his silver eyes wide. "You got just about everything but the kitchen sink!"

Data frowned. "I fail to see what use..." His head twitched. "Ah. A common phrase, used to indicate..." He slowed to a halt as he realized that Geordi was quirking an eyebrow at him. A shy smile spread across the android's face.

"Of course, I would have used the sink had I wished to improve my tap dancing."

Geordi groaned out loud, and Hesling dissolved into a fit of giggles. The chief engineer dragged a hand over his face and glared at the android.

"I can't believe I have to say this again; No puns!"

* * *

It took several hours to replicate a new set of legs, plus a replacement left arm. Geordi balked at the dental work.

"I, I dunno, it feels..." He shrugged awkwardly. "Creepy. I... I don't like teeth." He shivered, looking into Data's mouth and surveying the damage. Barclay leaned over his shoulder.

"Um, perhaps I could..." The man began. Geordi glanced at him.

"You sure? It's... kinda freaking me out. You know we're going to have to... remove..." He shuddered at the thought, and Barclay put a reassuring hand on his shoulder.

"H-honestly, sir," Barclay smiled anxiously, "Teeth are one of the few things I _can_ deal with. I-I've had a l-lot of dental work myself, you see, a-and..."

"Okay, great, thanks Reg." Geordi visibly relaxed. "I'd love for you to take that on."

"And thank you, also," Data said, "for looking after Spot."

"Oh, that's no problem, sir, no problem at all." Barclay beamed. "She's such a sweetheart!"

"Yeah." Geordi grimaced. "If what you find 'sweet' is a set of claws in your shin."

Barclay bustled away to the replicator and Geordi looked at the android sat before him.

"You gonna be okay?" His voice was soft and low, pitched only for Data. He saw the clenched jaw, the hands balled into fists.

"I..." Data's eyes flickered. "I am sure that, with a little discipline..." His voice petered out. Geordi put a reassuring hand on his shoulder.

"Would you rather be deactivated while Reg works on your teeth?" He felt Data shudder.

"No. I... I..." He sighed and looked up at the engineer. "I am not sure where, or when, I may be reactivated."

"Hey..." Geordi bent to look into Data's eyes. "You know I wouldn't let anything happen to you."

"Yes." Data looked away. "It is... difficult to trust."

"Yeah, I'll bet." Geordi patted him companionably as Barclay returned with a tray of, quite frankly medieval looking tools, and a rattling Perspex jar. Geordi swallowed and glanced at Data.

"I'm gonna go... check on the others' progress." He croaked, and Data nodded.

"Don't worry sir." Barclay said cheerily. "He'll be smiling in no time."

Geordi managed a weak smile of his own. "Sure, sure. Well, go ahead."

He scurried away as Barclay set to work, and found Hesling busying herself with a sensor cluster, preparing to install it into one of the replicated limbs.

"How's it coming?" He asked, trying to keep his tone light and conversational, but Hesling's head turned, her gaze penetrating.

"Just fine, sir." She replied mildly. He sighed.

"What is it?" He asked, and she darted her eyes away for a moment.

"Permission to speak frankly sir?" She asked, her cheeks flushing. He quirked the corner of his mouth into a smile.

"Granted. No need to be nervous, we're all friends here."

She laughed anxiously. "Sure. But there are things you can talk about with your friends, but maybe not with a superior officer."

"Hey, whatever's bothering you, you can tell me."

"Well, frankly, sir, it's you." Her blush deepened. "Not that you're bothering me, but that I'm... well, we're _all_ worried about you."

Geordi looked at her, startled. "What do you mean?"

"Well, you're not yourself. I know it's been hard, but..." She jerked her head back towards the android. "You know, it's obvious something's not right between you, and I know you've had your own troubles, but isn't it time you patched things up with him? I mean, he cares about you a lot, anyone can see that, and it doesn't seem fair that you're, well, blocking him out."

"I..." Geordi was taken aback. He hadn't realized how obvious the rift had become, how blatant his rejection of his lover. "I don't see that it's anyone's business."

"Oh, please!" Hesling tossed her head in irritation. "It's _all_ of our business! It's not right down here when you're so tense, snapping and stomping around. You _need_ him, he's good for you! Sir." She added belatedly, blushing furiously as she realized that she had overstepped her mark. To her surprise, La Forge's shoulders drooped and he dropped his eyes.

"Look, I know I've not been... well, myself." He sighed. "But, damn it, he's... we're... it's just not gonna work. I don't know how to think about him, he's so different."

"It's pretty obvious how he feels about you." Hesling said softly, bowing her head once more over her work. "Seems to me that if you're looking for proof, the fact he's even _here_ pretty much says it all."

"I know he stayed, when he could have left, but..."

"No, I mean _here,_ in engineering." She glanced up at him. "Doesn't it mean something to you that he spent three days building a new set of legs out of scrap and then hauled himself all the way down here, just to apologize?"

Geordi didn't reply. He was staring down at the leg that Hesling was holding as she carefully teased the tiny wires into place. She smoothed the bioplast over, and sealed it with a dermal regenerator.

"There!" She announced. "All ready for the foot and knee units. Tramin! You got that right knee yet?"

"All set here!" The Bolian replied, hefting the joint aloft with a grin.

"Looks like we're pretty much set to start putting things back together." Hesling looked at Geordi. "How about you?" He stared at her for a moment, his silver-blue eyes bright, before smiling.

"Yeah, I guess so. Tell me one thing..."

"Sure." Hesling smiled in return.

"You El-Aurian?"

She laughed, a little nervous again. "Naw, just..." She rolled her eyes. "People are all the same, under the skin. Whether it's circuits, or cells, underneath it all, we're all just people."

Geordi grinned and clapped her lightly on the back. "Damn straight. Funny that it takes an android to remind us what being human is all about."

* * *

Data bounced up and down on the balls of his feet, swung his arms experimentally.

"I believe that these may be an improvement on the previous design." He mused appreciatively. V'Las looked at him blandly.

"We have made a number of modifications to improve efficiency. We are sure that you will find them satisfactory."

Data nodded. "By my calculations, they will increase my maximum lifting capacity by five point three percent, and my potential top speed by four point two nine percent. An appreciable improvement."

"It doesn't sound like much." Hesling looked somewhat crestfallen, and Data smiled at her reassuringly with his new teeth.

"It is estimated that I had a maximum top speed of sixty-four point nine-oh-two four kilometres per hour. With your improvements, I have recalculated that to be sixty seven point six eight six kilometres per hour."

"Oh!" Hesling appeared somewhat mollified. Geordi grinned.

"And I'll bet the added lifting strength will come in handy." He said. Data turned and, with one swift movement, swept the chief engineer up into his arms. Geordi yelped as he found his feet leaving the deck, two strong arms wrapped around him. He thumped his fist into Data's chest.

"Put me down!" He barked. "Right now!" Data acquiesced and placed the man back on his feet. He was confused. He had expected Geordi to laugh, for the other engineers to laugh too, or perhaps even applaud. Instead, everyone just looked nervous and embarrassed, with the exception of V'Las, who was regarding the android with his customary Vulcan stoicism.

"Commander," Geordi growled, "A word. Now." Geordi strode away, barking back over his shoulder; "Back to work!" The engineers scattered to their various duties and Data trailed after Geordi, confused and ashamed.

When they were in a quiet room off to one side of the main engine bay Geordi whirled to face the android. Data put his hands up in supplication.

"Geordi, I assure you, I had no intention of embarrassing you..."

"Twice, Data!" The man snapped. "Twice in one day! In front of my crew! Now, I don't know where you've got these ridiculous ideas from, but it stops, right now!"

"I... I do not understand..." Data stammered. Geordi sighed and threw his hands up in exasperation.

"These... big, romantic gestures! Coming down here, picking me up, going down onto one knee... For crying out loud, I-I thought you were going to propose! I was mortified! It's... it's crazy!"

"I..." Data's eyes flicked back and forth rapidly. "I had not considered..."

"No, no, you didn't think, did you?" Geordi growled. "You didn't think about what all... what all this would look like to everyone else! You... you don't bring this stuff to work, and you definitely don't bring it into _my_ engineering department, you got it?" His silver-blue eyes were hard steel and lightning in his haggard face, and Data recoiled away from the harshness of the glare.

"I am sorry, Geordi, truly I am. I had not considered the ramifications of my actions. I simply wished to convince you of my sincerity."

Geordi sighed deeply and dragged his fingers through his unruly hair. "I know, and I'm trying to understand, but..." He gritted his teeth and forced his shoulders to relax. "You can't expect me to just... take you back. Just because you apologize, it doesn't make things right. I-I've got a lot to think about, a-and it's going to take time. Some of the stuff you told me..." He shook his head, folded his arms as he looked away. "I'm trying to see things from your point of view, and I know that you weren't in a good head-space, that... that you were being manipulated..." He closed his eyes, bit his lip. "But it doesn't change the fact that you were with someone else. I... I don't know how to deal with that. I'm not sure I can."

"Do you somehow think that it has been any easier for me?" Data's voice was harsh, and Geordi's eyes snapped to the android's face. Data's eyes were blazing, his teeth bared. "Do you imagine that my time with Maddox and Lore was spent in a blissful haze? Have you somehow forgotten everything that I went through? Can you really blame me for seeking comfort in the midst of a nightmare?" His voice had risen as he spoke, and he took a step towards Geordi, his face contorted with rage and grief. "Do you have any idea what it is like, to have your mind twisted and tangled, to be given love and have it snatched away by the people you thought you could trust? _You_ used the inhibitor on me as I watched my brother torn apart!" His voice had risen to a howl, and Geordi was gaping at him. Data closed his eyes. With a visible effort the android relaxed his posture, smoothed his expression, un-clenched his fists. He opened his eyes to look at the dark skinned man. His voice had lowered to a hiss. "You asked me before, did I think of you? Every day, Geordi. Every hour, every second, in a way that only an android can comprehend, I latched my mind to your memory to try to keep myself sane. I dreamed over and over of our reunion, and I clung to the hope that you would come for me, for both of us. Every. Day." Two yellow-gold tears spilt down his cheeks and he brushed them away roughly with the back of his hand as his eyes hardened. "I had convinced myself that you were different from the others, that I could trust you and rely on you. But you are just the same."

Data took a deep shaking breath and blew it out, before turning and walking away, leaving Geordi in stunned silence.


	42. Chapter 42

Chapter Four; Scindo

_Scindo. Verb. 1. Rend, cut to pieces 2. Tear in rage/grief 3. Divide, split_

* * *

"Data!" Crusher gaped, startled, as the android entered the medical bay, his eyes darting.

"Hello, Doctor. Might I have a moment of your time?"

"O-of course!" She put down her PADD and ushered him into her office, motioned for him to sit. "What can I do for you?"

The android took a breath. "Might I see the bodies recovered from Commander Maddox's ship?"

Crusher's eyes widened. "Why?" She blurted. Data averted his gaze.

"I thought that, perhaps, it may help to give me a sense of closure."

"Right." Crusher leant back in her seat. "I can understand that. But, are you sure? How are you, in yourself? I wasn't expecting to see you up and about so soon."

"I am... as well as might be expected, under the circumstances." Data's hands were fidgeting in his lap, two fingers tapping on his palm. "Might I see them? Now?"

Crusher frowned. "Does Deanna know you're doing this?"

"I have not asked her." His fingers sped up. "Please. May I?"

She sighed, pushed herself up. "I'll come with you."

* * *

In the morgue, she pressed a few panels. Four pods slid from the walls with a gentle hiss, their climate-controlled interiors housing the corpses recovered from the _Aerie_ class ship that Maddox had stolen. Data steeled his nerves and gazed through the small window of the first coffin, into the face of the Romulan guard. His hard expression was pinched, frail and fragile looking in death.

"I never even knew his name." He murmured.

"We don't know much about them ourselves." Crusher said quietly. "Their computers were locked down tight, the Romulan government have denied all knowledge. We're holding the bodies to take back to headquarters to let the experts see if they can get any more information."

Data sighed and moved to the second pod. Another Romulan, female. He wondered bleakly if these two were married also, as Maddox had been. He moved across to the third pod, looked at the readout on the small panel, and froze when he looked through the glass.

"There must be some mistake!" He cried, looking up at Crusher in shock. She shook her head sadly.

"No, look again. That's Sarah Maddox."

"But..." Data looked again at the pale face of the woman, her dark hair limned with frost. She had delicate lips, a high forehead and prominent cheekbones. He could see her dark eyelashes lying across her cheeks, her eyelids closed as if in sleep. Looking closer, he could see the ruptured blood vessels in her face, evidence of her struggle for life. He shuddered.

"He made the android to look like her." He whispered. "Why?"

Crusher sighed. "Another question we will never have an answer for."

"Was she... he said she was..." Data couldn't bring himself to say any more.

"About thirty five weeks." Crusher said softly. Data brushed his hand across the frosted glass.

"The child would have survived." His voice was flat and emotionless. "If I had not... If we had been faster..." He bowed his head, then straightened and moved to the last pod. Lying in state was the android, and he looked up at Crusher.

"Where are the others?"

"This is it." She waved her hand. "The only bodies on board."

Data felt his head spin. Only two guards. He could have overpowered them easily, even without Lore's help. He remembered the hologramatic trickery, the meddling with his perception of time.

He looked down again at the android. She was a perfect facsimile of Sara Maddox, down to the softly pouting lips and dark lashes. No blood in those painted-on veins, though, no lungs or brain to be deprived of oxygen. But dead, all the same.

"Do you think you could fix her?" Crusher asked, laying a hand on his shoulder.

"I could." He murmured, before shaking his head bitterly. "But for what purpose? She would learn, and grow, and she would begin to question. And one day she would ask me; why this face?" He looked up at the doctor. "What could I tell her? It is better that she never knows."

"All adopted children ask those questions..." Crusher began, but Data shook his head violently.

"She would find out, one way or another. Trust me." He quirked a bitter smile. "I helped to build her. She would be intelligent enough to piece together the puzzle. It would devastate her. This is... less cruel."

"You could give her a chance." Crusher said quietly. Data looked down at the android.

"Please, leave." He whispered. Crusher squeezed his shoulder briefly before quietly leaving the morgue.

* * *

"Hello, Data."

Data didn't raise his head as the counselor entered the morgue, stayed staring down at the android in the coffin.

"You've been here for some time." Troi said gently. Data didn't move as he answered.

"Three hours, fourteen minutes, fifty two point five nine seconds."

"I think it's time for you to come away." She drifted over to put a hand on his arm and he shuddered at her touch.

"Someone must mourn for her."

"And you have. You will. I know that you won't forget. But you don't have to stand here to remember her. Come away now."

Data drew a trembling breath and allowed himself to be lead back into the main medical bay and into Doctor Crusher's office, where Troi sat him on the couch and seated herself behind the desk.

"Geordi came to see me." She said, and paused a moment to see if he would respond. He had laced his fingers together in his lap, was tapping his left index and middle fingers spasmodically on the back of his right hand. She bent her head a little to look into his face.

"He was very concerned for you. He would like to see you, if you want. Would you like that?"

"I have nothing to say to him. He does not understand."

"Understand what?" Troi cocked her head to one side, regarding the android with her dark eyes. He turned his face to her.

"_You_ would not understand either." He said, and his voice was devoid of emotion, but she could sense them swirling in his mind. _Anger, guilt, grief, love._

"I can try." She said mildly. He scowled.

"You cannot understand, because you will judge me by your own invented standards, just as Geordi does." _Guilt, shame, fear, anger._

"I won't judge you, that's not my place, I'm here to listen."

"I remember Omicron Theta." Data spat. "I remember my brother, and I remember our love, and Geordi cannot accept that it is possible for me to love more than one being." _Anger, frustration, anger._

"I'm sure he understands that the love between siblings is different than that between romantic partners."

Data barked a bitter laugh. "You _do not understand_. My love for my brother has no such boundaries. I know every inch of him, every circuit, every _particle._" He glared at Troi. "I fucked him. I fucked him before, when we were innocent and young and perfect, and I fucked him here, on this ship, in his cell, broken and bitter and angry. My love for him has no limit, and I swore I would do all in my power to keep him safe, and I brought him here, and you killed him." _Anger, anger, anger._

Troi was doing her level best to project an outward appearance of calm, but Data knew that he had rattled her, he could hear her heart pounding, could measure the increase in her body temperature.

"Does that excite you?" He asked suddenly, and she gasped in shock. "Do you like the thought of Lore and I in a passionate embrace..."

"Stop!" She cried. "Data, please! This isn't like you, to be so crude!"

"Crude?" He snapped. "I am speaking of love! Pure and true! The only two members of an entire species..."

"But, you were raised as brothers, you said as much." She was struggling to regain her composure, and Data sneered.

"You still cannot comprehend, you are so locked into you biological interpretation, so blinded by human morals..."

"They are your morals too! Would you abandon..."

Data exploded to his feet and brought his fist down into the desk, smashing it in two with a driving hammer blow. Troi threw herself back onto the floor with a shriek.

"How can I be expected to explain anything if I am never given the opportunity to complete a sentence?" He shouted. "You dare to speak to me of human morals, after everything that has been done to me and my kind? You insist that human morals should be sufficient, but I. Am. Not. HUMAN!" He grabbed the terminal and ripped it from the shattered desk to send it spinning into the wall, before whirling once more to the shocked counselor, baring his teeth in a snarl. "How can you claim to know what is best for me, what is right? You do not know how I think, how I feel!"

"Data..." Troi drew herself up, leaning against the wall for support. "I _do_ know how you feel. I may not understand what it's like to be an android, but I understand that you feel betrayed and abandoned, I _do_ understand that. Please, I need you to calm down, I just want to talk to you."

He glared at her, his golden eyes glowing, and she was shockingly reminded of Lore. Then his expression softened, his eyes lost their feral gleam.

"I am so frightened." He murmured. "I have ruined everything, over and over again. I have lost everything, I have killed innocents, I have destroyed my career. What am I meant to do?"

Troi closed her eyes briefly and drew a calming breath.

"The first thing you need to do is ask for help. I am here to help you. You have to trust me."

"Please..." He whispered.

"Put your hands where I can see them!" Barked a voice, and Data whirled to see two security personnel, phasers drawn and aimed. He snapped his head round to glare at Troi.

"You are asking me to trust you, while I have weapons aimed at me?" He growled. She shook her head, waved at the guards.

"Please, no, it's fine, everything is under control, please go!" She said desperately. Data took a swift step towards her and the guards raised their phasers again.

"Don't move!" One of them shouted, and Data's lip twisted.

"I know now what you were doing." He whispered to her, his voice lethal. "You were trying to trick me, to lull me into a false sense of security so that I can be captured and deactivated and dismantled, just like my brother. How can you ask me to trust you, when all you organics do is lie and manipulate and betray?"

"Data, that's not true. I didn't know that security had been alerted, I promise. Someone must have heard a noise and called them. I didn't know. I need you to calm down and think rationally. If I had wanted to capture you, I could have done it in the morgue. You had your back to me, I could have deactivated you, but I didn't, because no-one wants to deactivate you. No-one's going to harm you." She turned her dark gaze to the guards. "I will not allow it."

The guards slowly lowered their phasers, and Crusher appeared, stepping in front of the security detail with her arms folded.

"As you can see, the situation's under control." She said calmly. "So, off you go, out."

The two guards looked at each other, then at the CMO, who was regarding them icily.

"Yes, sir." They backed slowly from the medical bay, their eyes fixed on the android until the last moment. As the door his shut, Data allowed his legs to give, and he slumped heavily to the floor amid the shattered remnants of the desk, his breath rasping in and out. He wrapped his arms around himself and his fingers twitched and tapped compulsively at his own shoulder. Crusher looked questioningly at Troi, who nodded reassuringly, although the counselor's face was pale. Crusher backed away, although she kept one eye on her office as she went about her duties.


	43. Chapter 43

Caladbolg; The Hard Blade.

Chapter One; Prodo

_Prodo. Verb. 1. Assert 2. Betray 3. Abandon, forsake_

* * *

His door chimed, and Data put down the cat toy with a small huff of irritation. Geordi.

"Enter."

The door hissed open, and the dark skinned man crept into his quarters. Spot's tail rose like a flag, and she strutted over to the engineer to mark his legs with her scent. He bent at the waist to run his hand over her spine, and she whirled on him with a hiss and a swift swipe of her paw. He jerked his hand back just in time to avoid her claws, and the cat strutted away, safe in the knowledge that she had defended her living space.

"Well, no warm welcome for me, I guess." He murmured, standing up. His silver-blue eyes met yellow-gold, and Data stood from his kneeling position on the floor. The android was wearing civilian clothing again, and Geordi caught himself looking appreciatively at how well the charcoal grey highlighted the pallor of the android's skin. He gave himself a mental shake.

"Geordi." The android greeted him flatly. No warmth there either. Geordi felt his hackles rise. This was so unfair! He wasn't the bad guy here, he wasn't the one... He took a breath.

"Hey. Thought you might want some company."

"Not really."

"Okay." Geordi forced his shoulders to relax. "Well, maybe you _need_ some company."

"If it was thought that I needed human interaction, I am sure that Counselor Troi would be here."

"Data, why are you being like this?" Geordi said softly. "I'm trying to help. I... I want to be here, to talk, to be with you."

"Did she ask you to visit me?" Data said sharply. Geordi sighed.

"Does that matter? I could have said no."

"It means that you are here under duress, and not out of a true desire to spend time with me. It makes an appreciable difference. Are you here to assess my reaction to a stressful situation? For that is what this is, Geordi, and I would rather I was left in peace."

"For how long?" Geordi took a step towards him. "How long are you going to turn everyone away? When are you gonna start letting people in again?"

"When I feel that I am able to trust the beings I share this space with."

"You... you don't trust me?" Geordi stammered, shocked. Data scowled.

"How can I? You are the one who betrayed me, enabled my brother's capture and disassembly. You used the instruments of my torture against me!"

"I had no choice!" Geordi snapped. "How was I supposed to know what you had promised Lore? And besides, even if I had known what... what was going on between you... I'm not sure I would have done anything differently."

Data stepped towards him, his eyes glowing. "You were only too pleased to separate us! You are just like the others, you wish to possess me, own me! You view me as you would any other piece of equipment on this ship, as a part of _your_ remit as chief engineer!"

"That's not true and you know it!" Geordi shouted. "You know damn well that you're not an object to me, that-that you're just as real and alive as anyone else on this ship! A-and if I want to possess you, it's not as a... a piece of equipment, it's as a partner, as a lover! Yes, okay, if that makes me selfish, fine, but I... I can't share you, Data, I won't!"

"You have no choice!" Data cried. "Can you still not understand? _I_ have no choice, I simply feel the way that I feel, and I cannot change that! How can you not accept that there is room enough in my heart for both of you?"

"Because I refuse to believe that you feel the same for me as you do for a-a mass murdering psychopath! The one who made you torture me, who... who murdered his own father, your father! And you're asking me to just... let that go?"

"No!" Data threw his hands up. "I am asking you to acknowledge my feelings! I am not asking for you to accept _him_, or what he has done, any more than _I_ can forgive him for his actions! I need you to understand that I cannot, _will not,_ stop loving him, but that does not mean that I cannot love you also!" He took a long stride towards the man, his jaw clenched. "And I do love you, Geordi, and I wish that I did not, because I have lost everything, _everything,_ for the sake of staying here with you."

"_You've_ lost everything?" Geordi jabbed his finger into the android's chest. "They've signed me off, barred me from my own department! Work related stress!" He barked a harsh laugh. "It's nothing to do with work and they know it! It's you, Data, you! I can't sleep, can't eat, I can't concentrate on my work, because all I'm thinking about is how to un-fuck this situation, and I _don't know! _I've found the one thing I-I can't fix! And I... I hate you! I hate you for doing this to me! I hate you for putting me through all this... all this shit!" He thumped his fist into the androids chest. "I fucking hate you, do you understand? I hate that I care about you so much that worrying about you is putting my career in jeopardy! I... fuck you!" He punched him again, and Data rocked on his feet.

"Geordi..."

"NO! Shut up!" Geordi punched him again, tears rolling down his cheeks. "Fuck you! Fuck you, Data!" He swung his fist into the android's chest once more, and Data wrapped his arms around him and pressed him close, and Geordi let go, weeping hysterically into the android's shoulder, clutching desperately at the back of his shirt.

"Fuck you." He mumbled into the fabric as Data cradled him close. He could hear the machinery whirring inside the android, the smell of him filling his nostrils, warm electronics and coolant and lubricant. His arms were strong and firm, and his body was warm and oh so familiar. Geordi sobbed again, pressing himself into Data's chest. "Fuck you."

"If you wish." The android replied. Geordi felt more than heard the quiet words that thrummed through Data's vocal synthesizer, and his body filled with heat. God, how long had it been? He drew his head back, rubbed his cheek across the android's, could hear the rough sound of his unshaven face against the bioplast skin. Data's fingers clenched in Geordi's jacket as his lips found the man's neck, tasting and nuzzling the dark skin. Geordi shivered and gasped another sob, brushing his tears away against Data's cheek, crushing their bodies together. He kissed the android's jaw, feeling the hard structure under softness, such a perfect facsimile of humanity. He shuddered as Data's teeth raked his throat, somehow threatening and tender at the same time, and deeply arousing. Data's hands slid up under his shirt, fingers pressing into hot skin, demanding, compelling. He copied the gesture, running his nails down the android's back, and Data gasped and arched into the engineer's body, his chest hot against the man's, the thrum of machinery a purring vibration that seemed to fill Geordi's whole world. Data's mouth closed around Geordi's neck, sucking and worrying the tender flesh until the man gasped out loud. He could feel the android's erection, firm against his own rising lust, and he pressed himself into it, grinding, yearning.

"God, you're beautiful." Geordi moaned, running his hands along Data's spine, and the android grabbed his shoulders and thrust him backwards roughly. Geordi reeled away, stumbling and tripping to fall onto his back with a cry. Data was breathing hard, his shoulders heaving and eyes glowing with a fierce light.

"I _knew_ it!" The android hissed. "I knew that you could not be trusted! You are just like the others. You were going to attempt to deactivate me, you want to keep me, own me! I will not allow it!"

"You... you're kidding me!" Geordi cried, scrabbling to his feet. "I wasn't... I never even..."

"I have been around you organics for too long!" Data snarled. "I am starting to think like you! How can I trust you, when I know how you feel about beings like me? I will be dismantled, dissected, studied and replicated. I will not submit!" He roared, fists clenched, rage blazing in his golden eyes.

"Data, I'm... I'm not asking you to..." The man reached out his hand, and the android swatted at it. His fingers barely connected, but Geordi drew his hand back to his chest with a cry, his eyes wide.

"You are all the same!" Data raged. "Even my own father saw me as nothing more than a storage vessel for human memories. I will not allow it! I will not let you steal my memories again!"

"I think my hand is broken..." Geordi croaked, cradling his arm. "Data... I think you broke my hand..."

Data looked at him for a long moment, his chest heaving. Then the fierce light left his eyes, and he stepped towards the man. Geordi drew back, and Data looked at him with shock.

"Geordi..." He whispered. "I think something is wrong..."

"You... you're damn right something's wrong!" Geordi gasped. He felt sick. His hand was throbbing, he could feel his own rapid pulse thumping against the injury. But worse, so much worse, was that he was afraid, afraid of Data, and he had never felt that before. He took another step back, away from the android. Data's face crumpled, and his hands shook by his sides.

"Geordi..." Data whimpered. "I am so sorry. I am afraid. Please, you have to help me..."

"I... I don't think I can." Geordi whispered. "I tried, Data, I really did. I..."

The door opened behind him and he fled.

* * *

Data raked his trembling fingers through his hair, ground his teeth together until his jaw creaked. Wrong, wrong, wrong, over and over, he would lose everything, until there was nothing but the hurt and fear and anger. He dragged his nails down his cheeks, covered his face with his hands and screeched in frustration. His mind and body burned with lust, the smell of the man clinging to his shirt, his hands, the taste of his human skin lingering on his lips. He shuddered and groaned, gripped by his passion. His hands left his face to slide down his body, one hand slipping up under his shirt and the other down the front of his pants, his eyes unfocused and distant with memories. Not now, not alone, it wouldn't work, but he stroked himself anyway, trying to push away the dark shadows with pleasure. His breath shuddered in and out, chest heaving with effort as he stimulated himself, until he could stand it no longer. He stumbled into his small bathroom to stare into the mirror. His eyes were wild, his hair in disarray, the snow melting on his shoulders. He groaned as he leant his head into the glass, his hand moving faster as he grabbed the sink and stared into the reflection of his reflection of his reflection of his brother's reflection in his eyes, and he came with a wild cry, his body jerking, and the glass creaked and snapped against his forehead, spider web cracks running away from his eyes and fracturing his face into strange distorted fragments.

His shoulders slumped as he stared at his shattered image, and with his lust slaked, the fear and anger reasserted itself. He hauled his arm back and smashed the mirror into a thousand black feathers, denting the wall behind with his fist as the blood ran down the panel. He screamed as he ripped the sink from the wall, before turning his rage on the rest of his possessions.

It was only when he reached for his violin that something clicked in his mind, and he stopped, his fingers around the slender instrument. He turned it over and over in his hands, smoothing the wood, thumbing the strings, before turning to survey his devastated room. His books; ruined. His artworks; destroyed. He slumped to the floor, his back to the wall, and the violin dropped from his hands. He wrapped his arms around himself and pillowed his face on his knees as his fingers tapped and tapped and tapped.

It was some time before Spot crept out from under the bed to wrap herself around his legs.


	44. Chapter 44

Chapter Two; Fiducia

_Fiducia. Noun. 1. Courage 2. Faith, reliance 3. Trust_

* * *

It took some time for him to even speak to the humans, and even longer before he allowed a visitor. As the door opened he backed away to the furthest corner of the room, his shoulders pressed to the wall, watching guardedly as Troi entered his quarters. She glanced around until her dark eyes met his. She smiled softly and greeted him, and the door slid shut behind her as she moved into the room. And then, to his astonishment, she ignored him.

He watched warily as she moved around the room, tidying and putting right, and then turned her back on him to go to the replicator and make herself a drink. She had her back to him! He shuddered. Did she not realize how dangerous he was, how easy it would be for him to attack? He heard the small soft sound of the atoms arranging themselves into molecules, and the smell of chocolate reached him as she lifted the steaming mug and blew the vapour from the surface of the drink. She looked at him again and smiled as she drifted across the room to sit on what was left of his cannibalised couch. She sat and sipped and leafed through a book that he had torn the cover off. The silence was beginning to grate on his nerves.

"Are you not afraid of me?" He blurted. She didn't look up as she spoke.

"Not really. I know you're strong, and fast, and I also know that you're frightened and angry. But I can tell that you don't want to harm me. And I trust you." She idly flipped the page, and it fell out of the broken spine into her lap.

"How can you trust me, when I do not trust myself?" He whispered harshly. She lifted the loose page with her slim fingers, and tucked it back into the ruined book.

"Because I know you, even when you don't know yourself. We've been friends for such a long time. And I remember everything that you've done for me, and how kind and gentle you are. I know you care about your friends, and we care about you."

"I am finding it hard to believe." He took a breath. "How can I learn how to trust again?"

She looked up at him then, and smiled softly as she put the damaged novel down on the floor. She patted the sofa, inviting him to sit with her. He wanted to, so much. He wanted to sit and talk, to lean his head on her shoulder and cry, to allow her to soothe his ragged nerves. He wanted to trust her. He shook his head. She nodded sympathetically.

"I appreciate how difficult a decision it was for you to allow me to come into your quarters, and I'm very proud of you. It's a big step. You're very brave. That's one of the things that I've always admired you for, your courage. And I know that trusting is hard, perhaps the hardest decision for a being to make, to allow themselves to be vulnerable. I think that the reason that you're so angry is because you _have_ been vulnerable, and it hurt you. You spent a long time not being able to defend yourself, and now that you can, you're using your anger to protect yourself. It's more than understandable."

Spot crept over to her and rubbed her legs, claiming her. Deanna looked down at the cat fondly, and Spot rumbled a reluctant purr before strutting to her food bowl. Deanna looked up and around the room again before looking at the android.

"Trust cannot be forced, it can only be earned. I hope that you will come to believe that you can trust me. Will you come and sit? It would mean a lot to me."

"How can I forget what you have done to me?" He murmured. She sensed the change in his emotions as his thought processes shifted, his memories crowding in, the hurt and anger and fear.

"Not me, Data." She shook her dark curls slowly. "I think that you are dwelling too much on your negative memories. Will you do something for me? Think back, and remember a time when I, personally, betrayed you, or deceived you. A time when I was cruel, or lied. Can you remember?"

"No." He whispered.

"I have nothing but love for you, Data. You are one of my dearest friends. And I wish that you could sense my feelings as I sense yours, so that I could share that with you. You have worried in the past that your brother's actions would tarnish you, and you went to great lengths to prove that, although you were both androids, you were very different people. I know that organic beings have done terrible things to you, but we are not all the same, we are all different people. And right now, everyone around you cares very deeply for you."

"I know." He said quietly. "I _do_ know it. And... I care also. But... I cannot trust. Why?"

"That's what we're going to figure out, together. I have no doubt that it's going to take some time, but it doesn't matter how long it takes, we're all here for you. As I told Geordi, we can't expect you to recover from such an ordeal overnight."

Data shivered. "Is Geordi... does he... hate me?"

Deanna leaned back, cradling the mug in her hands. "No, he doesn't hate you. He was angry, and scared, but he doesn't hate you. None of us do."

Data stepped towards her. "I hurt him. I did not mean to, it was unintentional. Does he understand that?"

"Of course he does. He knows that you're very much afraid, and that your fear is what is making you lash out. I told him not to visit you until I said you were ready. I hope you don't mind me telling him to stay away."

Data swallowed and looked away. "It is... understandable. But, I miss him, and the closeness that we had... before. Why does he not believe that I can still love him?"

She sighed. "These are... complicated questions. There are a lot of things about your case that make things very difficult for me to untangle, and Geordi is finding it hard to come to terms with what you've told him." Her dark eyes locked with his, and he moved another step towards her. She smiled.

"Data, I would like for you to tell me everything you can, so that I can understand things from your perspective. I am happy to act as a mediator between you and Geordi, until you feel ready to see him again. Would that be acceptable?"

"Yes." He whispered.

"I am so proud of you, you're being so brave. I know how frightened you are, and I understand. But I hope you believe that I mean you no harm, I have no ulterior motive. I just want to talk."

He stood looking down on her for a long moment, before cautiously seating himself next to her, his eyes locked on hers, watching intently for any sudden or suspicious movement. All she did was smile. His hands shook where he had rested them on his knees, and suddenly he found tears running down his face. Weakness, vulnerability. He swallowed hard, clenching his hands into fists as he turned away from her to try and hide his face and stop the flow of bitter tears, but it was as if a dam had burst and he couldn't stop, now that he had allowed himself to let go. She didn't move, didn't raise her hands, just sat perfectly still as he cried silently, his shoulders shaking with his stifled sobs. He looked up at her, his face twisted with anguish.

"Help me." He gasped, and he reached out his hands to her. She took them in her own, holding them tightly.

"That's why I'm here." She murmured, smoothing her thumbs over the back of his trembling hands. "It's going to be all right."

He lurched forward and thumped his forehead into her shoulder, his arms jerking out to gather her close. She wrapped her arms around him in turn, stroking his hair and swaying him, letting him lean against her and find a measure of comfort in the release of his tension. His emotional state was still confusing for her to pick through, but she felt his mind clear somewhat, the fear and anger receding, to be replaced by... something she had not anticipated.

"Data..." She murmured, and suddenly his lips were on hers, stealing her breath. She had never kissed him before, and was shocked to discover how soft and warm his mouth was. She stayed very still, neither reciprocating nor drawing away. She felt his fingers tighten in the fabric of her dress, his body shifting towards her. She raised her hands between their bodies and pushed gently on his chest, encouraging him to move back. He was breathing hard, his cheeks still stained with yellow-gold tears.

"Data, I need you to try and think very clearly. This is not what you really want."

"I trust you. I want to prove myself to you. Let me love you."

"No, Data. That's... not necessary. It's quite common for victims of sexual abuse to think that intimacy has to involve sex, but that's not the case. I _do _trust you, and I believe that you trust me. I want to be your friend."

His eyes flicked rapidly from side to side, and he slowly released her from his embrace. She took his hands again, reassuring.

"I think that your experiences have colored the way you think about relationships. I believe that, in your head, trust and love and sex have all tangled up, and I understand. I want you to know that the way you feel is normal under the circumstances. But trust can exist without love, and love can exist without intimacy. It's something we can talk through, together."

"I understand." She felt the guilt and shame wash through him. "I am so sorry."

"It's quite alright." She smiled softly. "It's strange for me to be able to be so forthright with a client, but I appreciate how analytical you are. I want to give you as much information about what you're experiencing as I can, so that you can understand that what you're feeling is normal. You are coping extremely well. You are not broken, you are not to blame. It's not your fault."

"But I am to blame!" He blurted. "I caused the deaths of five people! My career is over!"

"You are not to blame for their deaths. You had no way of knowing that they wouldn't live, you had every intention that they would survive, and you were escaping from a terrible situation. As for your career... It's not over. Just... on hold." She gripped his hands tightly. "Until you get better."

"I will never be respected. Not after the way that I have behaved."

"We all have immense respect for you. And we don't blame you for your actions. You were under duress, you were unwell, and we understand that. No-one is blaming you."

"I blame myself." He murmured, looking away. She squeezed his hands again.

"I know, and that too is normal. But, as you recover, we can work through these thoughts."

"I have ruined my relationship with Geordi."

"Not necessarily. He _is_ finding it hard to come to terms with things. But he loves you very much. I think that his love for you may win out against his anxieties."

Data frowned, swung his head towards her. "He is anxious? About me?"

"Of course. He cares about you, so he wants you to be happy. But you will have to talk things over with him, to reassure him, in time. When you're ready."

"I want to see him. Now."

She shook her head sadly. "I'm not sure that's a good idea. I'd like to focus on you and your recovery first."

Data nodded, crestfallen. "I understand."

"Good, I'm glad, and I'm very proud of you, you're doing so well." She patted his hand and stood slowly, moving to put her mug back into the replicator and get herself another hot chocolate. She seated herself back on the couch, and he began to talk.


	45. Chapter 45

Chapter Three; Prendo

_Prendo. Verb. 1. Catch up with 2. Get a grip on 3. Reach safe harbour 4. Understand_

* * *

Geordi checked himself in the mirror again and blew out a sigh. He had finally gotten around to getting his hair cut, had decided to simply have it cropped close to his skull. He had trimmed his beard, shaved his cheeks into a semblance of respectability. His civilian clothes felt strange and awkward and they seemed ill-fitted, the waistband too loose, the arms baggy. He scowled at his reflection, silver eyes glittering in irritation. He would have to update his measurements. He turned his face this way and that, regarding his hollow cheeks and hooded eyes with a grimace. He jumped when the door chimed, and called a greeting as he scurried into the living space. The door slid open and Deanna Troi glided in, smiling her soft sweet smile. Geordi's shoulders slumped.

"Sorry, Geordi, not yet. Maybe soon, though. He's making great progress."

"You said that a week ago." Geordi grumbled. She patted him sympathetically on the arm as she walked past him to the replicator.

"How are you, Geordi? You're looking much better."

"I look like hell and you know it." He scowled. "Coffee, seeing as you're there."

She nodded and returned with two mugs, and they sat together on his couch. She cocked her head as she looked at him.

"I meant the haircut, and the beard. They suit you. But yes, if you want honesty, I can tell that you're still not sleeping or eating properly. Have you seen Beverly?"

"I don't need a doctor, there's nothing wrong with me."

"I never said there was, but she may be able to give you something for your appetite, and perhaps something to help you rest."

"I just want to get back to work. It's being stuck on my own, not knowing what's going on in my own department, that's what's bugging me!"

"You don't have to be on your own. You're welcome at poker night, and there's always the lounge bar, the hollodeck..."

"Yeah, I know." He huffed a sigh. "You know what I mean."

"Yes, I do. And for what it's worth, he misses you terribly. He's looking forward to seeing you."

"So what's the problem? Why can't I... Y'know, sometimes I think, to hell with it, I'm just gonna go to his quarters and see him, I don't care what happens."

"You _do_ care, because until he's really ready, it won't go well, for either of you. And I don't think you're ready either."

"The hell makes you think that?" He scowled at her, and she pursed her lips.

"Did you go through those courses I gave you?"

He grimaced. "Yeah, and it was boring as hell. Interspecies relationships... Damn, I never thought I'd have to worry about that sort of stuff."

"But you do, because that's what this is. You must understand, although he looks human, his thought processes are very different."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, with different codes of ethics and social moirés and, and moral standards and... all that stuff... I get it, I do!"

"And has it made any difference to the way you think about his actions?"

"Yeah..." He sighed. "No. I dunno. Guess I just never thought that he'd... do something like that. To me."

"You need to come to terms with the fact that he's not the same person any more. We all grow and change. You are not the same person that you were twenty years ago. The difficult thing, for both of you to deal with, is that you have changed gradually as your experiences have shaped you. But with Data, all his changes caught up with him at once. He's finding it as difficult to understand as you are."

Geordi put down his mug and stood, began to pace restlessly around the room as he brooded. Deanna watched him move around the room, her eyes dark and distant as she focused on reading his emotional state, trying to gauge his reactions. Geordi swung his arms in irritation.

"You know what? I wish he had lied. Even... even if I _knew_ he was lying, I wish he had just told me that everything was fine, that he and Lore... Damn it." He stopped in front of his bookcase, staring at the spines of his ancient technical manuals. "I know every circuit, I've repaired and analysed and diagnosed, but... I want to fix him, I do, but I guess, what I really want, is for him to be like he was before, and he's not going to be, is he? He's always going to be scared and angry."

"Data's emotions are not like human emotions. He finds it hard to process more than one emotional state at a time, and sometimes, yes, he's angry and frightened. But there's a lot more going on, underneath, and it's starting to come through. He just needs to learn to manage his more negative emotions, and focus them in a positive way."

"Is it working?" Geordi turned, wrapped his arms around himself. "All this talk, all the time you're spending with him? Are you going to be able to fix him?"

"Geordi..." She shook her head. "You're still thinking about this the wrong way. He's not broken or malfunctioning, he doesn't need to be fixed. You're an engineer, so you tend to view things in two states, working and not working. But people aren't like that."

"I know that! Probably why none of my relationships have ever worked." He mumbled. "Should've never gotten into this in the first place, I told him it wasn't going to work."

"And that is because of your point of view. Working, or not working. Geordi, loving someone doesn't mean that you're going to be happy all the time, regardless of everything else. It's not a state of bliss, some magical thing. Relationships aren't perfect, and eventually they all take work. There will _always_ be arguments, and compromises, and difficulties."

"Then what's the point?" He huffed. "Why bother?"

"Because the positives outweigh the negatives. A good relationship is a wonderful thing, but it's not an easy thing. We are raised on fairytales, stories of 'happily ever after', but that's not a realistic way to look at life." She smiled softly at him. "You can't just kiss him and break the spell."

"I could fucking try, instead of standing round doing nothing." He growled. She shook her head again.

"I'm telling you, he needs time, just as you do. He's... he's very unhappy today, and..."

"He's unhappy?" Geordi strode back to the couch, thumping down onto the cushions to sit and stare at her. "About what? Why?"

"Geordi..." She warned, but he waved her glare away.

"I have a right to know what's going on with him, you need to tell me."

"And I have a duty of care. He's my patient, and what he tells me is in the strictest confidence."

"Oh God, it's bad, isn't it?" Geordi stared at her, trying to draw an answer from her dark eyes. "Has he... hurt himself? Is he..."

"Geordi, stop, I'm not going to tell you."

"For fuck's sake, Deanna!" He thumped the couch cushion. "Now I _know_ it's bad! How bad is it? Tell me he's not thinking about... doing something stupid? After the whole Fajo thing he was thinking about..." His silver eyes bored into hers, she could see the tiny mechanisms whirring and moving around and over neon blue. She pressed her lips together and glared right back at him, her dark eyes fathomless. Before she could react he flung himself up off the couch and strode to the door. She scampered after him as the door slid open, jogging to keep up with his rapid strides.

"Geordi, wait!" She cried. "Don't, please! He's not ready..."

"I don't care!" He barked, marching down the corridor. "I'm not gonna just sit around any more, while he works himself up to killing himself! I'm gonna do what I should have done weeks ago! I'm gonna march right in..." He slowed as he reached the door to the android's quarters, and Deanna caught his arm.

"Geordi, if you burst in there, shouting and accusing, it's not going to help, you know that. Please, come away and let him think things through."

"And what if he thinks himself worse? What if he doesn't work it out? What then? No, I'm through with waiting." He thumped the panel and the door opened. He shook himself free of her arm and entered Data's quarters.

"Geordi, please..." Deanna followed him in, taking his arm again, tugging him back. His silver-blue eyes swept the room, his face fell.

"What the hell happened in here? Where's all his art? His books? Data!" He shouted, his head swivelling to take in the whole room, body tensed, poised.

"Geordi?" Data was as far from the door as he could get, but he stepped forwards towards the man as he spoke.

"Data! What happened in here?"

"Geordi..." Data stepped forward again, and then his expression hardened. "You are not supposed to be in here."

"Why not? Because seeing me makes it harder for you to go through with it?" Geordi growled, his fists clenched. Deanna tugged on his arm again.

"Geordi, please..."

Data's head swung to her, his yellow-gold eyes sharp and penetrating. "You told him?"

"No, Data, I didn't tell him anything."

"She told me enough!" Geordi barked, jerking his arm roughly from Deanna's grip to advance on the android. "You're thinking about killing yourself, aren't you? Of all the stupid, selfish..."

"Selfish!" Data's eyes widened, then narrowed in anger. "It is an act of selflessness! You said yourself that you would be better off without me, that your life would not be so complicated, so I am removing myself from the equation..."

"That's not how it works!" Geordi snarled. "Maybe I _would_ have been better off without you if I had never _met_ you, but to think about doing this to me, after everything I've gone through? How am I supposed to save you from yourself, huh? I can't swoop in and rescue you from your own head! You're insane if you think that killing yourself would make my life easier, it's... totally crazy!"

"Are you intending to convince me that my intended course of action is inappropriate by informing me that I am mentally unbalanced? I know that, Geordi! I am fully aware that my thought processes are abnormal, but if you cannot see that I would do this for you, that..."

"For _me_? Data, it'd _kill_ me! I'd... I'd be devastated! You know what, I don't care about everything else, it just doesn't matter, everything else that's happened, it's not as important as having you in my life, e-even if you're hurt and frightened, even if you can never look at me again, even if you _hate_ me, I-I'd rather have that than nothing at all!" Geordi stopped, his mouth falling open. "That's it, isn't it?" He whispered. Data was staring at him, the anger draining from his eyes. He looked at the android, really _looked_, and saw what he had been missing.

"It doesn't matter." He whispered. "What matters is that I love you. And everything else... we'll work it out. _I'll_ work it out. Data... You don't need fixing, but I think I do." He looked down, his shoulders slumping. "You were right, I've been thinking about things all wrong." He looked back up at Data. "We can make this okay."

The android's mouth opened, his throat worked, but no sound emerged. His golden eyes flickered as he analysed. Then he stepped close, raised one hand and brushed his knuckles across the man's cheek.

"You have grown a beard." He said weakly. Geordi gave a breathy laugh.

"Yeah. If you don't like it..."

Data's fingers slid around the back of his neck and the android leaned in to press their mouths together, and suddenly Geordi didn't know what to do with his hands, couldn't think about anything, his world slipping away, receding under the warm pressure of those familiar lips against his, the fingertips against the nape of his neck. He felt like he was floating, and his only anchor was those four points of contact on his skin, the softness against his mouth. Data drew back and Geordi gasped, tears spilling from his eyes.

"I have missed you." The android murmured, withdrawing his hand, letting his arm fall back to his side.

"I missed _you._" The man replied. He didn't want to move in case he broke this spell, didn't want to startle Data into reacting once more with fear. But in the android's eyes he saw nothing but trust and love, and it nearly broke his thundering heart. He wanted to say so much, but the words seemed to stick in his chest, and he couldn't make a sound. Data's eyes flickered, and he looked up over Geordi's shoulder.

"Would you give us a moment, counselor?"

She looked concerned, but her eyes softened as she nodded.

"Call me if you need me." She murmured, and slipped out of the door.

Data fixed his gaze once more on the engineer, suddenly shy and uncertain, and Geordi took a small step back, putting enough space between them to allow them both to relax.

"Well..." Geordi scrubbed his cheeks roughly with the heels of his hands, rubbed the back of his neck nervously. "Um... What... what d'you want to do now?"

Data's eyes glowed, and he looked at the man with an intensity that made Geordi's face heat suddenly. He sucked a breath in through his teeth. He didn't want to go too far, not yet, it was too soon, but his body was yearning for it, that closeness and comfort.

"Uh, I don't mean... not that I want... I-I mean, I _do _want you, very much, but..."

"I understand. And I appreciate your restraint, although I too have been anticipating the recommencing of our physical affections."

Geordi chuckled softly. "That's my Data."

The android cocked his head. "Is it not the customary time for your evening meal?"

"Uh, yeah, I guess. Hadn't really thought about it."

Data nodded firmly. "I would like to go out and have dinner with you."

"Out?" Geordi raised his eyebrows. "To the lounge?"

Data took a deep breath. "Yes. I think it would be... good, for us, to spend time together, and for me to begin to accustom myself again to being around others. And I believe that having you with me will make it easier. Is this an acceptable suggestion?"

Geordi blew out a sigh. "Sure, I'm okay with it, but it's a big thing. You sure you're ready?"

Data squared his shoulders. "Yes."


	46. Chapter 46

Chapter Four; Adoro

_Adoro. Verb. 1. Beg, plead with, appeal to 2. Honor, adore, worship, pay homage, reverence_

* * *

"And then what?" Guinan leaned over the bar, rapt. Troi chuckled and shook her head.

"Oh no! I left them to it. Trust me, what I sensed from them... I wasn't going to hang around!"

Guinan smiled. "Well, it's about time. Still..." Her eyes darkened. "It won't be easy."

"It never was." Deanna sighed and sipped her cocktail. "But they're both strong. And stubborn!"

"Who's stubborn?" Riker swung himself onto the stool next to Troi, and she looked up at him with a smile of greeting.

"None of your business!" She nudged him with her elbow. "You should know by now that you won't get any gossip out of me."

He grinned at her as Guinan bustled away to fetch him his drink. Riker opened his mouth to reply, but his face froze as his eyes slid up and over Troi's shoulder to fix on the door.

"Guess I don't need to get the gossip." He murmured, and Troi sensed them before she saw them. Geordi and Data were talking quietly but animatedly as they walked into the lounge bar, back in their uniforms, their shoulders close but not quite touching. They seated themselves in a corner, and a member of staff drifted over to take their orders. Guinan came back and put Riker's glass on the bar in front of him.

"Well, that's unexpected." She said, her voice low. Deanna shook her hair.

"I'm as surprised as you, although I have to admit I'm pleased." She smiled, watching the couple surreptitiously under her dark lashes. They had seated themselves opposite each other, leaning over the table to talk. Data's eyes kept darting around the room, but she sensed no fear or anger from him, just wariness. Geordi's emotions were kaleidoscopic as he talked, and she dropped her gaze to her drink as the engineer's thoughts turned again.

"You okay?" Riker asked, nudging her. She blushed.

"Oh, yes. Just... They're very... intent on each other."

Guinan smiled broadly. "You don't need to be an empath to tell that." Riker chuckled and took a sip of his whisky.

"Good to see them both up and about. And together."

"Wonder if they're in need of a friendly greeting..." Guinan mused, and Troi darted her hand out to grab at the sleeve of the El-Aurien's dress.

"Don't you dare!" The counselor hissed. Guinan chuckled.

"I'm only teasing! I wouldn't dream of interrupting. Still, it's good to see them both again."

"I'll drink to that!" Riker raised his glass, and Troi smiled weakly, removing her hand from Guinan's arm. Her dark eyes darted over to the couple in the corner again. They had received their food, and Geordi was talking animatedly, waving his fork in between bites of pasta. Data was smiling and toying with the food on his plate, his attention captured by the engineer's story, until a crewman walked past the table. His golden eyes flickered, and Troi almost stood to go to him as she felt the fear swamp his mind. But Geordi reached over the table to cover the android's hand with his own, and Data refocused on the man in front of him, his horror receding.

"Hey." She jumped as Riker put his hand to her shoulder. "You okay?"

"Yes!" She blurted. "Yes, I'm just... worried about them. It's been a long journey, for both of them. I just want to make sure that nothing goes wrong."

"Relax, they're doing fine." Riker smiled and squeezed her shoulder, and she reached up to pat his hand. She looked up at him with a smile of her own, but her eyes slid once more to the table in the corner. Data had turned his hand over to take Geordi's, was tracing his thumb over the back of the man's hand. Geordi was leaning over the table, his food forgotten as he spoke intently, and Data nodded his acknowledgement. She saw Data's leg move under the table, and a hot wave of emotion flooded her senses as Geordi shifted in his seat. She blushed furiously and looked fixedly down into her glass. Riker chuckled and his hand slid from her shoulder.

"I know that face. You see, they're fine." His eyes were shining as he looked at her flushed cheeks. "D'you want to get out of here? Go somewhere a bit more... peaceful?"

She glanced up at him and quirked an eyebrow. "Now _there's_ a loaded question. And, no, I don't think that's necessary." She straightened her back and tucked a strand of hair back behind her ear.

"You're not usually so... affected, by that sort of thing." He was grinning at her, and she tossed her head in pretend annoyance.

"Well, I've been working with them both so closely, I'm tuned in to their emotional states, and it's making it... harder to ignore."

"Why ignore it?" He murmured. He reached out and brushed her hand with his fingertips. "Why not just... feel it, go with it?"

"Will..." She whispered. "It's... not that simple."

"I'm not asking for anything, you know me too well for that. Just, y'know... have a little fun. You've been working so hard, maybe you need to relax a bit."

Deanna opened her mouth with every intention of telling him how stupid his suggestion was, when her eyes were drawn to movement.

Data had sat back suddenly, his back ram-rod straight, as an engineer had approached to talk to Geordi. Deanna felt the android's anxiety, and her heart ached for him, but Geordi was already waving the man away with a smile, saying something cheerful but turning him away nonetheless. He turned back to Data, and his emotions swirled, care and love, pride and worry and protectiveness, and not a little desire. Data leaned over the table again, his eyes darting around the room as he spoke, and Geordi nodded and smiled reassuringly as he reached out to brush Data's hand with his fingers. Once again Data's fear faded, and the android quirked a small smile. His forehead furrowed, and he seemed to be asking the engineer for a favour, judging by his nervousness. Geordi nodded again, spoke softly to him, and they both stood.

"Deanna?" Riker said softly. She focused her eyes on him as another pulse of emotion flooded her mind, and she gasped softly and looked away, felt her face heat. Data and Geordi walked past, seemingly unaware of their presence. Data was walking ahead, with Geordi slightly behind and to one side, the engineer's hand resting gently on the android's back, and Troi realized that he was covering the android's deactivation switch. She felt the comfort that Data was drawing from that simple gesture, and the storm of emotions from Geordi as they left the bar.

"Will..." Her dark eyes fixed on him and she took his hand.

* * *

Geordi followed Data into his quarters, dropped his hand from the android's back as the door hushed closed behind them. Data turned to look at him, and Geordi was suddenly nervous. What now? He didn't know what to do, his arms felt awkward hanging by his sides, but he didn't want to pressure Data into anything he didn't really want.

"Uh..." He wasn't sure what to say, how to explain what he was thinking and feeling, but then Data's hands were on his shoulders, pushing him gently until his back bumped the wall. Data's eyes roved over his face, drinking him in. The android's breathing had quickened, and Geordi felt his own heart thump, his pulse race.

"Data..."

The android leaned in to press his forehead to the man's, gazing deeply into his eyes. Data's hands slid from Geordi's shoulders and down his arms to take his hands as he tilted his head to brush his lips across the man's, sharing their hot breath, barely touching. Geordi shuddered, half-closed his eyes, as the hairs rose on the back of his neck.

"I-I don't want you to feel like you have to... do anything you don't..."

Data pulled the man's hand to his crotch and pressed it into his rising lust. Geordi sucked a breath through his teeth, caressed the android's burgeoning erection through the fabric. Data gave a shuddering sigh and moved his own hand to the man's sex, brushing, pressing, stroking.

"Data, I..."

"Hush." Data swept away Geordi's words with another skimming touch of his mouth, flicking his tongue out to run the tip over Geordi's lower lip, sliding his hand under the waistband of the man's clothes to tickle and tease with feather-light fingertips. Geordi closed his eyes with a sigh and copied the android's action, slipping his hand into Data's pants and running his fingers along his hardness. Data moved his mouth to the man's neck, then his collarbone, lipping and kissing. Geordi was gasping, trembling. He felt like a teenager, awkward and desperate, uncertain and inexperienced all over again. Data took the man's wrist and pulled his hand out of his clothes before kneeling down in front of him, his own hands busy now with the fastenings on the man's trousers.

"Data, y-you don't have to..." Geordi gasped as a firm hand gripped his sex and drew it out, and a warm wet tongue trailed up its length. He clamped his hands onto the android's shoulders as that tongue flicked across the head of his cock, teasing the frenulum, lapping at the shaft.

Data looked up at Geordi as his lips closed around the head, sucking firmly at the tender flesh, and Geordi's hands trembled where they rested on his shoulders. The android blinked his golden eyes slowly before sliding his mouth down, taking the man's length into himself.

"Oh fuck..." Geordi breathed, and Data hummed appreciatively before tilting his head sideways to allow Geordi a view of his dark shaft sliding in and out of pale golden lips. The android's eyes turned upwards again, and Geordi felt a wave of heat rush through him. Data raised his hands to Geordi's hips to push him into the wall, supporting him. Geordi's fingers clenched on Data's shoulders as the android took his whole length, pressing and massaging with his tongue. Geordi groaned as the tip of his cock was pressed against the roof of the android's mouth and then drawn into his throat. His whole body was thrumming with this, that glorious mouth and lips and tongue and throat lighting him on fire, his heart hammering in his chest. He opened his mouth to tell Data to stop, but all that came out was a strangled groan as the android's teeth gently raked the length of his shaft. He tried again to find the words to warn his lover that he was going to tip him over the edge, but instead could only cling to his shoulders, leaning onto him for support as Data pressed his lips around him and drew him in, his tongue pulling his hardness back and in and _swallowing_ and it was tight and hot and it was so good, and too good. Geordi's shaking hands gripped Data's shoulders as he moaned, all his tension and anxiety and _need_ bundled up and thrust away as his climax welled up in him, and his mind filled with simple delight and the sensation of his lover's mouth on him and around him. Data's tongue squeezed him again and a fierce wave of pleasure swept over him and his cock jerked as he came with shocking suddeness, spurting into the android's throat, gasping as he released. Data's movements slowed and then stopped, his throat moving as he took the man's essence into himself as if it were elixir, his golden eyes half closed with pleasure. Every breath that Geordi drew in was a gasp, every exhalation a shuddering groan, until his heart slowed enough that he no longer feared that it may break his ribs. His arms were limp, his legs shaking, he felt light-headed.

Slowly Data released him, rose to his feet, and Geordi wrapped his arms around the android and drew him to his chest, pressing their mouths together, tasting himself on his lover's lips. Data's hands went to the man's waist, Geordi opened his mouth to him, and Data melted into his arms with a moan, his eyes rolling back as the man's tongue brushed his. Geordi kissed him deeply, exploring the android's mouth all over again, thrilling to the small noises he was drawing from him, Data's strong hands trembling. The android's kisses became increasingly demanding, and he pressed Geordi back into the wall with his body, his hips moving impulsively, unfulfilled. Geordi answered his kisses eagerly, before pushing him back to allow enough space for him to drop to his knees. Data pressed his shaking hands to the wall as Geordi drew his sex out from his clothes and began to explore it with his tongue as eagerly as he had his lover's mouth. Data gasped a breath out in a shuddering sigh as his lover kissed the tip of his hardness, lapped at the lubricant seeping from the opening.

"Geordi..." He groaned, and silver-blue eyes looked up. Data swallowed. "Do you wish for me to re-route my fluidic system?"

Geordi shook his head and dipped his mouth onto the android's phallus, sucking at the bioplast tip covering the sensor cluster, and Data gasped.

"Wait!" He breathed. "You... You must do something for me."

Geordi drew his head back. "Sure. What do you need?"

"Just... Look at me. While you... I want to be able to see your eyes. Please."

"Okay, sure." The man dipped his head again, looking up with his silver eyes as he took the android's cock into his mouth, his hand caressing the shaft as his tongue pressed and wrapped and teased. Data looked down onto him, his mouth hanging open and his chest heaving as he panted, exhalations hot on his lips. Geordi's other hand slid under to caress his pseudo testicles, brushing the sensitive puckered skin as he took as much of Data's length into his mouth as he could. Data groaned, pressing his fingers into the wall panelling, and Geordi closed his eyes to concentrate on the scent of him, the taste and feel.

"Please! Look at me!" Data gasped, and Geordi looked up. Data's eyes were wide, he looked almost shocked, his legs shaking.

"Geordi... Yes, yes, yes, yes..." His mouth gaped and he gave a shuddering cry, his golden eyes fixed on Geordi's silver-blue orbs as his fingers clenched into the metal, puncturing the wall as his cock leapt in Geordi's hand and the man sucked, fluid filling his mouth as Data cried out again. Geordi drew his head back to swallow, smoothing his hand gently up and down the shaft, drawing out his lover's orgasm as the android looked down at him, trembling and gasping. Geordi kept his eyes fixed to Data's as he licked and kissed the last of the golden liquid away, relishing the taste, so familiar, so welcome. Data pulled his hands from the wall as his breathing slowed, and lowered himself to kneel in front of the man, reaching out to run his hands over his dark face, tracing his jaw and bearded chin before leaning in to seal their mouths together in a searing kiss. Geordi could feel the heat of him, radiating from his chest.

"Hey." He pulled back, his silver eyes searching the android's face. "How come you didn't shut down?"

"I..." Data's eyes flickered. "I have learned... some things, about myself."

Geordi opened his mouth, and then clamped it shut as he decided that he didn't want to know. No need to spoil it, ruin this moment, with questions that he was sure would only cause awkwardness. He shook his head, quirked a smile as he ran his hands up and down the android's arms, before reaching down sheepishly to tuck himself back into his trousers. Data smiled shyly and copied, seemingly reassured by the action of covering himself.

"Kinda hoped that we'd, you know... that this evening could've gone on a bit longer." Geordi sighed a little in disappointment, resting his hands on the android's thighs.

Data smiled softly, leaned in close to kiss Geordi's neck. "I believe that the night is not yet over."

Geordi chuckled. "Well, it might take me a while before I'm ready for anything else. I know I haven't... you know, been with you, for a while, but..."

Data's lips met his again, teeth tugging at his lip. Geordi flicked his tongue out and Data bit it gently before sucking it firmly into his mouth. His pale hands slid up Geordi's shirt, nails dragging along his back as he met the man's lips again with his, and Geordi moaned into his mouth.

"Oh!" Geordi gasped as he parted their mouths. He glanced down, and then back up with a rueful grin. "Huh... Never been so pleased to be wrong."

Data's eyes were glowing with excitement and anticipation, and Geordi felt a fresh thrill of arousal course through him.

"I want to see you." He murmured, trailing his hands down the android's chest. "All of you."

Data took the man's hands and stood, drawing him up to kiss him again, pressing their bodies together. He broke away and stepped back, releasing Geordi's hands to reach up and strip off his shirt, revealing an expanse of shimmering pale skin over sculpted musculature. Geordi's eyes raked over him appreciatively, his gaze no longer restricted by the limitations of his visor. He saw the scars, deep puckers and ridged seams running across the android's body and marring his smooth bioplast, and his heart constricted in his chest as he winced in sympathy. He reached out to trace his fingers along one of the poorly fused wounds, and Data stepped back sharply, shaking his head, golden eyes shadowed with memories.

"Please, not now."

"Sorry, I... I wasn't thinking." Geordi stammered. "Shit, I..."

"Geordi." Data held up his hand. "It is... all right." He looked away. "It is understandable that you would not find me as... aesthetically pleasing..."

"Hey, hey..." Geordi stepped forward, put his hands to Data's pale shoulders. "That's... that's not it at all. I'm just, sorry that you're hurt. You're beautiful."

Data shook his head slowly, his eyes lowered. "I am... imperfect."

"Yeah, well, so am I." Geordi ran his hands up the android's neck to cup his face, looking into his eyes. "So's everyone. I'm not expecting you to be perfect. You're... well, you're gorgeous! Don't doubt that. I'm just... glad to see you, I mean, really _see_ you, and, honestly, you're everything I'd imagined, and more. And I love you."

Data gave a shuddering sigh. "I love you too."

Geordi laced his fingers into the android's hair and drew him into a tender kiss. He could feel Data trembling.

"Look." He leaned back and let his arms fall, giving him space. "We don't have to do anything else tonight, okay? We can just, be together. Or, I can leave. Whatever you need." His silver-blue eyes studied his lover's face. Data looked aside and down, took a breath before looking back at the man.

"Stay. Please." Data's hands found Geordi's waist, pulling gently. He tucked his chin over the man's shoulder, pressing their bodies close. Geordi wrapped his arms around him, offering comfort, support. Data's lips brushed his neck and the man hummed in approval. He turned his head to bury his nose in the android's dark hair, inhaling his scent, brushing his ear with his mouth. Data shivered again and pressed himself closer, lipping at Geordi's earlobe, making the man sigh. Data lowered his arms and drew back, stepping away. He swept the man up and down with his luminous eyes.

"I believe it is now your turn. Let me see you."

Data's gaze was fierce as Geordi reached to his shirt, and he shivered at the intensity he saw in those golden eyes. He stripped his chest bare, dragged the fabric down his arms, and stood for a minute as Data had done, allowing the android's eyes to rove over his body.

"You have not been consuming adequate nutrients."

"Yeah, I... I keep forgetting to eat. Just... didn't seem that important."

Data moved in close, drifted his fingertips over the man's chest, leaving a trail of raised hairs in their wake.

"It is obvious that you require someone to care for you. I will make sure that you eat a sensible diet, and also that you get regular and adequate rest."

"You know, sleep is the _last_ thing on my mind right now." Geordi drew a shuddering breath as Data's fingers traced his abdominals, tickled through the thatch of hair peeking from the open fly of his trousers. The man's breath caught, and he reached out to run his hands over the android's flanks, smoothing his fingers over the pale shimmering skin. Geordi's hands stopped just short of the waistband of Data's pants, and he looked at the android, questioning silently.

"Geordi, you appear to be concerned for my welfare. Whilst it is comforting, I assure you that, should I find myself in a situation which I find uncomfortable, I will inform you immediately."

"I just want to make sure I'm not going too fast, that's all."

"At this precise moment, I think fast would be acceptable." The android's voice had dropped to a growl, and he pressed his chest forward, meeting the soft dark skin of his lover's torso. Geordi groaned and leaned into him, running his hands up Data's back. He kissed the android's jaw as a pale hand slid into his trousers to grip one buttock and pull, seeking increased contact. Data's lips were on his mouth again, and he clutched at his lover's back as their bodies twined, the android's leg between his, grinding and tormenting. Data broke the kiss and stepped away, his mouth quirked into a smile. Geordi was breathing hard, sweat beading on his chest and back.

"You wished to see all of me." The android murmured, and slipped deftly from his shoes and trousers, seemingly in one fluid movement. His socks and boxers swiftly followed until he was standing before his human lover completely naked. Geordi felt weak with it, his bones turned to rubber and his mind to sand, and all he could do was gape and make small noises in his throat. He had never really seen _anyone_ naked, and this moment was a gift that he felt somehow unworthy to accept. It took him a moment to register the hint of anxiety on Data's face, and he realized that he had been motionless and silent for long enough to make his lover nervous. He swallowed hard.

"You're fucking gorgeous." He croaked. It seemed pathetically inadequate, he wanted to write poems or burst into song, somehow let this being know what this gesture of love and trust meant to him, and how desirable he was, and how unutterably beautiful, and 'fucking gorgeous' was the best he could come up with? But Data was smiling that soft shy smile, and Geordi's heart started beating again, and his brain sparked with joy and passion. Hurriedly he removed the rest of his own clothes to meet his lover's gesture with his own, exposed and vulnerable, trusting and deeply aroused.

Data's burning gaze seemed to be sucking the air from the room, Geordi felt breathless and too warm with the passion coursing through his veins. He wasn't sure how much longer he could stand there doing nothing, with Data right there, glowing, and he _was_ glowing, it was different from the glow he had always seen with his visor but still there, a radiating, pulsing halo of light around the android, like some luminous sacred being. Somehow they both moved forward at the same time, and their bodies met with a thump, hands on waist, hip, shoulder, neck, mouths everywhere, tongues tasting and exploring and seeking, skin on skin and hardness meeting hardness, mouths yielding. No words now, just the breath shared and the unspoken language of two bodies yearning and striving for more, more, more.

Data lifted the man effortlessly to lay him on the bed, side by side, teeth and noses bumping and hands fumbling, legs tangling.

"H-hang on, wait, wait. " Geordi drew back a little, breathing hard. "I... I want to do something for you, but, you'll have to give me a minute, okay?" He stroked the android's face, brushed his lips with his thumb. Data moaned and caught the digit gently between his teeth, his eyes bright with lust as his tongue teased the man's thumb-tip. Geordi growled low in his throat.

"Wait." He murmured, and pushed himself up from the bed, with every sign of reluctance. Data groaned with a mix of annoyance and anticipation as he watched the man walk into the bathroom. He threw himself back onto the bed with a sigh and tried to calm his breathing. He was already a little too warm, and he reflected that a pause was probably for the best. Still, he mused, as his hand drifted over his erection, he wouldn't have minded carrying on. He shivered as he teased himself, mind whirling with anticipation, and it seemed an age before Geordi re-emerged. The man's breathing was faster than normal, his skin temperature higher than average.

"Okay." Geordi crawled up onto the bed and Data sat up to meet him, only too eager to pick up where they had left off. Geordi put his hand to Data's chest and gently pushed him back.

"No, lie down." Geordi's voice was husky, and Data complied, lying back to look up at the man as Geordi swung his leg over his lover's body to straddle him, and Data gasped as the man's hand gripped his hardness. His pale hands smoothed over the man's dark thighs as Geordi guided the android's cock between his buttocks, and Data cried out in surprise and delight as the tip slid inside.

"Um, I... I'm gonna go slow, okay? I've never... done this with anyone..." Geordi frowned as he eased himself down, and Data's fingers gripped the man's thighs as he found his sex sliding into his lover. The android gritted his teeth and tried not to move.

"I've been... practicing, with toys, but this is..." Geordi gasped as he moved himself up and down, each time pushing a little further, until he was sitting in Data's lap. The android's eyes were wide, his hands shaking on Geordi's thighs.

"Geordi." Data breathed, and the word was like a benediction, and the man felt the blessing spread through him. He rocked his hips and the android gasped a shuddering sigh, mouth gaping. Geordi put his hands to the android's hot chest and shifted his pelvis, easier now, and a wave of pleasure rushed through him, looking down on his white-gold lover as the android groaned through gritted teeth.

"I wonder how many times you can climax." Geordi mused, and Data's eyes rolled as his chest arched off the bed, his body shuddering as his phallus was gripped inside the man's tight warmth.

"I, I, I do not know..." Data's sentence broke to a cry of pleasure as Geordi moved again, guiding himself slowly up and down the android's cock. "But, soon, Geordi, oh..."

"Really?" Geordi was panting, sweat glistening on his dark skin, and Data thought that, at that moment, he had never seen or experienced anything so beautiful. He moaned again, trying desperately not to give in to his lust and thrust up into the man for fear of hurting him. Geordi was smiling down at him, silver-blue eyes sparking with joy, and Data grabbed at the man's hips, pulling as gently as he could bear, guiding him, urging him, faster, faster. Geordi complied, rocking himself, his fingers clenching on the android's chest. Data was gasping, his eyes wide, and he could see the reflection of himself in Geordi's shimmering silver eyes, and he locked his gaze to the man as the surging upswell of his ecstasy threatened to sweep him away. His legs trembled with the effort not to move, the urge to push himself over the edge almost overwhelming, and Geordi saw the desperate longing in his eyes and ground himself into his lover, thrusting himself onto his straining hardness. Data howled, his processors whining in his chest, voice breaking to an electronic wail of static, and he bucked his hips once, twice, three times, and then he came, a burst of pure joy crashing over him, his face contorted with ecstasy as he stared up at his dark lover, pouring out his love and desire into his body in a surge of delight. His chest heaved with effort, his breath hot on his lips as he allowed his orgasm to wash over and through him, always threatening to drag his mind away, but he would not allow it, and he thrust himself up into the man again, driving another burst of pleasure through his neural nets, one last pulse of glorious sensation before he relaxed, satiated and trembling, eyes wide and astonished.

"You okay?" Geordi breathed, leaning down, staring deeply into Data's eyes. All Data could do was nod, gasping for cool air, shaking with the aftermath of his orgasm. He reached up and pulled his lover down, pressing him close to his heaving chest. Geordi groaned as the movement shifted the android's sex inside him, and Data felt the man's answering hardness pressed against his stomach.

"You have not achieved orgasm." He murmured, and Geordi shook his head, his forehead pressed into the android's shoulder. Data bent his knees to put his feet flat to the bed, and pushed himself slowly up and in. The man groaned again, his hands on Data's shoulders.

"I wish to show you how satisfying this can be for you. Is that acceptable?" Data murmured breathily into his ear, and Geordi kissed his neck, humming his assent. Data bit gently into his shoulder and moved again, pulling out and pushing gently in, making the man gasp.

"Would you allow me to move you to a better position?" He whispered. Geordi chuckled weakly.

"Sure, I'm okay with that. You want me to get up?"

"It will be better for you to be relaxed, so please, allow me." Data kissed him gently, pushed him up slowly to sit once more in his lap, and Geordi gasped as the android's hardness drove deeply into him. Data was sitting up too, his mouth on Geordi's neck, kissing and nipping softly, his hands running up and down the man's sweat-slicked back, and Geordi wrapped his arms around his lover's chest and somehow he was being lifted, and how Data had managed to get his legs underneath himself Geordi had no idea, for he had hardly felt the android move. And then his back was on the mattress, and his ankles were on Data's shoulders as the android gently pulled him to the edge of the bed to step down onto the floor. The android's eyes unfocused briefly and he shuddered, and Geordi was aware of a slickness of fresh lubricant easing the slow movements of that hard length inside him.

"Did you just come again?" He gasped, and Data shook his head, brow furrowed in concentration.

"No, I merely allowed a release of..." Datas mouth fell open as he slid deep into his lover, his pale hands on the man's legs as he pushed himself up onto the balls of his feet to get a better angle of penetration, and it was Geordi's turn to gape and gasp as he suddenly saw stars, an exploding kaleidoscope of pleasure tumbling through his mind, and he reached for Data, pawing at his arms.

"Oh fuck..." He cried, and Data leant over him and grabbed his hips, pulling his pelvis up and swaying his hips into him, searching for that spot that made the man howl. Geordi laced his fingers together behind Data's neck as his legs slid from the android's pale shoulders, and he pressed his forehead to his white-gold brow and shared his hot, gasping breaths, wallowing in the sensation of that electric jolt of joy every time Data moved inside him. Data was being so careful, he could feel the restraint of his movements, and the brightness of the desire in those golden eyes seemed to fill him up with joy, and he rocked his hips with his lover's movements and made Data growl in his throat.

"Geordi, I am trying to be gentle, to avoid harming you."

"I know, I know, but..." Geordi bucked his hips again and groaned, the fierce heat of euphoria blistering through him and lighting his body and mind on fire. He dropped his arms to clutch at the sheets as Data pressed himself home, sheathing himself inside him and grinding, and every movement sent sparks of delight spinning through him. Data pulled his hips up again, leaning deeply into him, and Geordi's body filled with a deep ache, pain and pleasure together.

"Slow down." He gasped harshly, forcing himself to breathe deeply and trying to relax his body, unclenched his fists from the bedding. Data complied, his movements deliberate and careful, his firm hands supporting Geordi's body.

"Do you wish to have more control? You may find it easier if you were to set the pace." Data murmured, and the man pressed his lips together as he nodded.

"It's... really different, not being... in charge." Geordi groaned as the android shifted, pulling back and away, leaving him feeling hollow and unsatisfied.

"If you turn onto your stomach, and I enter you from behind, you may move as fast or as slowly as you please." Data's voice was matter-of-fact, but husky with desire, and Geordi shuddered with the lust thrumming through his body as he rolled himself to put his feet to the floor, his face heating with a mix of embarrassment and arousal as he presented himself to his lover. Data rumbled a growl of approval as he ran his pale hands over the man's taut back and smooth buttocks, bending his knees to press himself gently into Geordi's tight opening, sighing with pleasure as the tip of his cock slid inside and the man groaned.

"Now," Data's voice trembled a little, "you may move as you wish. Please." This last almost a whisper, almost a plea, and Geordi pushed himself back, fists gripping the bed as he eased himself onto his lover. Data's hands gripped his hips as Geordi swayed his body back and forth, his embarrassment forgotten as he shifted and tilted his hips and that extraordinary explosion of sensation washed over him again, leaving him shaking and gasping as his cock jerked up against his stomach, twitching with longing. He closed his eyes and gave himself over to his pleasure, the feeling of that hardness inside him and those warm hands on his hips, supporting him as he shuddered with ecstasy, writhing onto his lover's cock with abandon as he clutched at the sheets and gave voice to his passion in gasping, heaving cries. Data's left hand slid down his leg and in, drifting towards his straining cock.

"Do you wish for me to touch you?"

"Yes, yes, please, oh fuck!" Data's hand wrapped around his length and Geordi howled as he pressed himself back, every movement a surging barrage of sensation as he thrust himself forward into his lover's hand, and back again onto his hard length to sent that electric pulse of delight jolting through him. He turned his head and opened his eyes to look up and back at Data, the android's pale brow creasing as he struggled not to give in to his own yearnings, and those golden eyes locked with his and Geordi's vision shimmered and wavered as he dimly registered the combined ripples of heat and energy pulsing from his lover, and then Data gripped him and slid his fist firmly up and down his aching length, and Geordi turned his head to press his face into the mattress and scream, shoving himself backwards and impaling himself as his climax exploded through him, his aching cock pulsing as he came, spurting over his lover's hand. He rocked himself forward and back again, howling as the tip of the android's cock raked that place inside him and his cock spasmed, another spurt of cum spattering the sheets, hips rolling as he ground himself onto that hardness, wringing himself of pleasure, his mind and body awash with glorious euphoria, his world rocking and swirling around him, the very universe tilting on its axis around that extraordinary thunderclap of ecstasy. He turned his head to gasp air into his aching lungs, his forehead slick with sweat, and Data's hands were on him, rolling him gently but firmly, and then the android's face was looking down into his, those glowing golden eyes wide with astonishment as he gripped himself, and Geordi felt liquid splatter onto his stomach and up his heaving chest, before Data lowered himself on trembling arms to press their chests together, the android's breath hot on his shoulder. He ran a hand up Data's back, stroking and soothing, and turned his head to pepper that pale face with kisses between breaths.

"I love you, I love you, God I love you." He gasped, and Data answered with a whimper.


	47. Chapter 47

Epilogue; Olim

_Olim. Adverb. 1. In the future 2. Once upon a time_

* * *

He was singing. For fuck's sake, he was singing again. Some stupid old song, a thousand years old.

"For nobody else gave me a thrill..."

"Data..." Geordi groaned, rolling over and dragging the pillow over his head.

"With all your faults I love you still..."

"Data!"

"It had to be you, wonderful you..."

Geordi rolled onto his back and flung the pillow in the general direction of the voice, only to find it thumping into his own face, the source of the song returning the pillow with a flick of his wrist.

"It had to be yoooou!" Data threw his arms wide and Geordi spun the pillow at him again.

"I'm not due on until Beta, I could have had a lie-in!"

Data strode to the side of the bed and solicitously slipped the pillow under Geordi's head, pressing a kiss to his forehead.

"And you may, once I leave."

"Like I'm gonna get back to sleep now." Geordi grumbled. He sat up, stretching, and watched Data striding around the room, dragging his jacket on and checking himself in the mirror.

"You're getting vain." Geordi chuckled, and Data raised an eyebrow at him in mock annoyance.

"I was merely appreciating the cut of this new uniform."

Geordi snorted. "You're appreciating how good it looks on you."

"As were you." The corner of Data's mouth twitched into a half smile, and Geordi barked a laugh.

"Yeah, okay, you caught me looking. Well, so maybe it _does_ look good on you."

Data nodded in agreement, tilting his chin at his reflection as he smoothed his hair.

"Some others I've seen might never be mean..." He crooned, looking at Geordi's face reflected in the mirror, and the man rolled his silver eyes and slumped back onto the bed, dragging the sheets over his head with a groan.

"I'll be so glad when this concert's done with. You don't need to practice, you know."

"Perhaps I merely feel like singing to you." Geordi felt the bed shift as Data flung himself onto the mattress and teased the sheets away from Geordi's face.

"My baby don't care for clothes..." He serenaded, and Geordi grabbed the sheets, trying to bury the android into the bed.

"My baby don't care for shows, my baby just cares for me..." Data tugged at the man through the sheets and Geordi laughed out loud as he shoved at the android's chest, wrestling the bedding back over himself.

"May baby don't caaaare who knows it..." Data's mellow voice filled the room and Geordi gave up, grinning and looking up into his lover's golden eyes as Data deftly extricated himself from the tangled sheets and tucked them around the man's body, before leaning over to press their lips together.

"My baby just cares for me." He purred, and Geordi shook his head, his bearded face creased with humor.

"You're an idiot."

Data smiled. "Happy anniversary."

Geordi groaned as Data stood and tugged his jacket straight. "Is it really? Damn it, I forgot. Hey, hey, wait up, no way is today our anniversary!"

"That depends on what you class as the beginning of our romantic relationship. By my calculations, it has been exactly two years since we officially became a couple."

Geordi frowned as he threw his arm over his face. "So you class the beginning of our relationship as when exactly?"

"From our first intimate encounter."

Geordi snorted. "We were hardly in a relationship then. But sure, you know what? Happy anniversary." He dragged the bedding up to his chin and wriggled into the mattress with a sigh. Data smiled at him before turning back to the mirror.

"Are we still intending to attend the poker game tonight?" He queried, smoothing his hair once more.

"Sure, if I can get some more rest! I'm beat, yesterday really took it out of me." Geordi held up his hand as Data quirked an eyebrow and opened his mouth. "Yeah, I know, you're gonna come out with some comment about 'putting it in', or something. But seriously, just let me _try_ and get some more sleep, will ya?"

"As you wish. Please do not forget to feed Spot before you leave for your shift. Will I see you for lunch?"

"I dunno, depends, I'll com you." Geordi mumbled, rolling himself up in the sheets. Data smiled fondly at the man's back.

"All senior staff to the bridge. Repeat, all senior staff to the bridge."

Geordi was up in a flash, all thoughts of sleep forgotten as the adrenaline surged through his veins. Data threw him his shirt and trousers and strode from their quarters, Geordi following only moments behind.

* * *

The atmosphere on the bridge was strained, there was no shouting or bustling around, merely a quiet tension as the turbolift door slid open and Data stepped out. He quickly scanned the room as he strode towards his usual station at ops.

"Data." Picard stood from the command chair, his face dark. Data stopped.

"Sir?"

"Is La Forge with you?"

"He will be here momentarily. Sir, should I take my station?"

Picard held up his hand. "No, stay there." His eyes were shadowed, his jaw muscles tense, and Data felt a tremor of anxiety sleet down his spine.

* * *

When Geordi stepped briskly onto the bridge he immediately registered the group standing before the viewscreen and came to a halt, tense. Riker turned his bearded face, his expression grim. Picard was staring fixedly at the starfield as if demanding the universe itself for answers. Troi had one hand on Data's shoulder, and her eyes were downcast and troubled. Then Data turned his head towards him, and Geordi felt his blood run cold. Data looked shocked and bereft, as if his world had crumbled beneath his feet.

"La Forge." Picard said, low, and Geordi walked slowly to join the group before the command chairs.

"Sir?" He queried, and Picard turned his distinguished face toward him. He looked haggard and tired, as if every year of his command was stacked on his shoulders.

"We've received a distress call. Play the message."

An ensign punched at his panel and a voice filled the bridge, choppy with distance and interference.

"This i... distress call, any assist... critical... ife support gone, hull beaches on decks two an... uck's sake, anyone! I don't know..." The message ended with a suddenness that left the room ringing with silence. Riker ground his teeth.

"We've located the craft, it seems to still be intact. We're scanning it now, while... while we decide what to do."

Geordi's eyes were locked with Data's. He felt as though he had been punched in the gut, all the air driven from his lungs. He opened his mouth but nothing came out for a moment, before he managed to croak, "No, no way, it can't be, please..."

Data looked at him, and his golden eyes were filled with sorrow as he said one word.

"Lore."


End file.
